


The Child of Thorns

by SilverRockets



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Diamond & Pearl & Platinum | Pokemon Diamond Pearl Platinum Versions
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Multi, Past Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-25
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2018-08-17 07:49:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 49
Words: 333,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8136062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverRockets/pseuds/SilverRockets
Summary: Inyssa Dawn and Barry Paladino embark on their long awaited journey, traveling far and wide to become the Champions of Sinnoh. But dark clouds are cast over the region with their eyes on our duo: a dubious criminal team, a deadly shadow that sees all, and a familiar ghost from the past. Only Emotion, Valor and Wisdom may create a light strong enough to guide their fate.





	1. The Untested Dawn.

**Eterna Forest - 6 A.M**

Metchi got tired of running, which always spelled bad news for whoever was chasing her.

She veered right and threw herself beneath a fallen tree trunk and now rested between a broad, moss covered rock and a small mound of earth and grass.

She heard their steps, seven or eight pair of feet tapping against the wet floor of the forest, and tried her best to control her breathing. It wasn't easy; she'd been smoking before the group of jackasses fell on top of her, forcing her to drop her last cigarette and run for her life. She wasn't sure which one of two she found more offensive.

 _Relax._  She told herself.  _Breathe in and breathe out, ignore the burning pain in your lungs and focus on finding a way out._

She wasn't sure if the voice was hers or not, but it was good advice nonetheless. Thinking was good, thinking distracted you from the  _Everything around me sucks_  and focused you on the  _Okay, we can make it out of this._

Problem was, plans and ideas were hard to come by recently. She'd lost her backpack, lost everything she'd managed to scavenge for the past weeks and was left with an empty cigarette pack and a heavy steel lighter, old enough to have been made in war times.

_"Let me take control."_

She couldn't help but wince at the feeling of someone else speaking inside her mind. That certainly wasn't her voice, which coupled with the warmth flashing behind her eyes could mean one thing.

"I can handle this," she whispered, her voice being drowned by the incesant steps around her. "I just need an opening to escape."

_"That will not be possible without risking our lives to a degree that I find unacceptable. I will eliminate them."_

A painful, cold shiver ran down her spine. Great, she was more scared of her partner than the actual goons trying to kill her.

"There has to be another way," she pleaded.

_"I admire your valor, but you're letting your emotions get the better of you. They saw us. They will report us to Jupiter or Mars or even worse, Saturn. We can't let them go."_

She closed her eyes and swallowed down all the anger and fear building up inside her. She pushed them to the furthest part of her mind, where they wouldn't interfere with her mission. To think she'd have to do this again...

She let her body fall against the cold grass, "Fine, but take over completely. I don't want to see it."

Before consciousness left her she saw one of them appear from behind a nearby tree. She was young, probably younger than her, and was dressed in the grey and black uniform she was so familiar with. Her eyes went wide with surprise, and immediately her expression changed to one of fury.

"Here she is!" she yelled for the entire forest to hear. "You! Give us back what you stole! Give us back Az...!"

Her hand moved on its own, covered in a powerful golden glow, and she fell into a silent darkness.

Waking came with a painful jolt, followed by enough dizziness she almost fell to the ground. Thick bangs of pink hair obscured her vision, and after a few moments of standing still she realized nothing in her body hurt, which was good. She closed and opened her hands, trying to get back the sensation of touch, and then looked around.

A big mistake. All eight bodies were laying on the cold ground, their limbs motionless and their eyes dull. None of them were breathing.

She stared wordlessly for what felt like an eternity. A boundless fury grew from her stomach outward, coating her skin completely. The grass and dirt rustled beneath her feet.

"Y-you... I told you to..." she stammered, the words not quite coming to her. "I didn't want to..."

_"That was all the time I could keep your conciousness at bay. I am sorry."_

She choked down on the vulgar variations of  _I don't believe you_  forming in her head and simply closed her eyes, forcing herself to take deep breaths. It was done, and there was nothing she could do about it. Just another few names to add to the list of people who'd end up dead because of her.

She spoke in as firm a voice as she could manage, "Let's go. I don't want to stay here any longer."

She took two steps before the voice interrupted her again.

_"You should take whatever they had in them. We need supplies, and they won't be using them anymore."_

Her feet stopped. She stood still for a few heartbeats, and turned toward the corpses.

"I hate you so much," she whispered, voice devoid of all strength.

 

* * *

 

 

**Twinleaf Town - 9 A.M**

Inyssa was a human burrito at the moment, reason why she didn't notice someone entering her house. She was technically awake, but being wrapped in three different blankets and with the morning cold assaulting her she would need at least half an hour to get up.

Three consecutive knocks resounded through her room, and half conscious she let out pale whispers of vulgarity. She pushed herself to her feet, still surrounded by blankets, and searched for the light switch in the darkness of the room, making sure she didn't step into any of her pens or notebooks.

"Come in, Sarah," she said with a raspy voice, and turned around to the solitary chair where she'd hung her clothes.

An older woman entered the room. She was short and stubby, with dark hair that fell to her shoulders, "How did you know it was me?"

"Well, you didn't break anything while coming up to my room so you're not Barry," Inyssa threw the blankets to the floor and started changing into her usual outfit, "and it's still morning so you're clearly not my mother."

She let out a short, fruity laugh, "Right. Sorry for waking you up so early. And for entering your house without permission."

"Again, Barry has woken me up plenty of times by himself, and with considerably more force. This is nice, in comparison," she tried to sound courteous, though she hadn't gotten much sleep last night. If anyone deserved such a treatment it was Sarah. "So, can I help you with anything?"

Sarah showed her a smile with a clear apology glued to it.

"I know it's really early and it's not your responsibility, but could you please go find him?" the worry lines on the woman's face were as clear as if they were sculpted in marble. "I need to be at work by ten and I can't go looking for him right now."

Inyssa closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Barry. Of course it was Barry.

"Sarah, I know he's not the most careful kid out there, but I doubt he's in trouble. He's probably just climbing trees or crashing into things."

The woman took a piece of paper out of her pocket, "Normally I would agree, but he gave me this before he left. I think he wanted me to give it to you."

Inyssa grabbed the paper and unfolded it, revealing a short and very clumsily written letter. All the words were wobbly, as if someone had written them as fast as humanly possible:

_Hey Niss! Did you see the thing in the TV!? The reporter thingy, they were talking about professor Rowan! Looks like he came back from his journey to wherever and now he's back in Sandgem Town!_

_He's like a super smart dude and he's full of Pokemon to give to kids and we're more than kids! Come on Niss we can't let this opportunity pass, I'm going crazy waiting for my eighteenth birthday and when he sees what great trainers we are he'll give us a Pokemon for sure and we can go in our travels!_

_I'll wait for you in Route 201, we'll figure something out to get to Sandgem, maybe we can ride a bike, or a Rhydon! I'll wait as long as I can, if you're late I'm fining you a million dollars!_

_Barry_

She lowered the letter, an indescribable look on her face, "Dear Synn... I don't... how does he get these ideas?"

"I don't know," Sarah sighed, "but I'm really worried that he'll be impatient and run through the tall grass without a Pokemon. I don't want him to get hurt."

Inyssa crumpled the paper furiously in her hands, swallowing her frustration down. That dumbass, what the hell was he thinking? She didn't want to believe he'd be stupid enough to cross the route by himself, but she knew how much he hated not being able to do something. The last months had been a nightmare: with his eighteenth birthday so close the kid had been twice as energetic as usual, only talking about how much he wanted a Pokemon. Not that she minded, she was quite similar in that regard, but it became a problem when it affected someone other than her.

She felt bad for Sarah. Taking care of that Emolga in human form must've been the equivalent of having a full time job, on top of her actual full time job.

"I'll go get him," she told her, resigned. "I'll bring him back, even if I have to drag him by his stupid scarf."

"Oh, thank you so much," Sarah was about to grab Inyssa's hand in thanks, but she stopped herself in time. "I'll be sure to order something delicious for both of you when I get back."

Inyssa showed her a warm, yet tired smile. She didn't have anything to do for the day, like usual. She could waste some time looking for her idiot of a friend.

"I'll be on my way then. I'll make sure to punch him in the face for worrying you so much."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa was half dead by the time she arrived at Route 201. She reached the sign marking the start of the path and had to stop to breathe, leaning against it. Her legs felt like jelly, her lungs were like a furnace and her mouth was as dry as a desert. Still, she had to find Barry before he did anything dangerous. Well, more dangerous than usual.

Luckily, the boy seemed to have held his Ponytas for once in his life and was waiting for her a few feet ahead.

He was tall and slim, with blond hair in a disheveled, crescent haircut. From behind she could see him arms crossed, impatiently slamming his foot on the dirt. Ahead of him lay a long patch of tall grass, which he looked like he was going to cross any second now.

"B... Barry, hey Barry!" she slowly walked towards him, gasping between words. "Whatever you're thinking of doing, just don't. Please."

He jumped at the sound of her voice, his hair getting seemingly pointier. He recovered almost instantly, and formed a massive grin on his face.

"Looks like you're late again Niss. Jeez, what's with your face? It looks like you ran for an hour."

"I ran for twenty minutes," she admitted.

"Wow, are we really that far from town? You must be as excited as I am for my super plan!"

"I'm not, I was just worr..." she stopped herself. If she wasn't already so agitated the red on her face would have been easy to notice. "It's cold, I didn't want to freeze coming here. And by the way..."

Inyssa drove her fist into Barry's arm, with as much force as she could manage.

The boy let out a screech, "Augh! The heck was that for?"

"For worrying Sarah," she replied, suddenly feeling a lot better. "And your plan is stupid, we can't cross the tall grass without Pokemon."

Barry's eyes gleamed at her words, like they did whenever he was about to explain his dubiously working plans.

"Alright, hear me out," his expression changed, already forgetting about the punch inflicted on him. "You know how wild Pokemon appear when you cross the grass? We just need to sprint as fast as we can through it and we'll be in the other side before you know it!"

Inyssa looked at him, mesmerized by his ability to warp logic into such a strange thing.

"That's the stupidest plan I've ever heard. And I'm counting the time we tried to get honey from that Combee nest."

"Oh come on Niss, I'm really really sure about this one! Come on, let me show you!" he put his hands together, doing those Poochyena eyes that had stopped working on her years ago.

Without waiting for her response Barry turned around as fast as wind. He lowered his knees and put one hand on the ground, ready to start sprinting at any second.

"Here we go!"

"Barry, wait! Don't...!"

A booming voice shook the route, almost making them jump out of their skin.

"What do you think you're doing!? Stop right there, young man!"

Both kids froze on their tracks. Barry's body stood still for the first time since Inyssa arrived, and the girl herself felt chills up her spine. That voice...

They both turned at the same time, heart in their throats. Behind them stood an unreasonably tall man with ashen white hair and a thick mustache. He wore a dusty brown suit with a blue vest underneath. His eyes were cold and stern, and Inyssa felt like they were looking right through her. She recognized him instantly.

Professor Rowan had discovered them doing something stupid and dangerous, Inyssa realized. She opened her mouth without thinking and said the first thing that came to mind.

"Aw, fuck"


	2. Winds of a New Beggining.

Rowan raised an eyebrow, the tips of his mustache twitching slightly.

"Watch your language, Miss." His voice was deep and gruff, like the sound an Ursaring would make if it could speak. "And while you're at it, please step away from the tall grass".

Inyssa slowly looked down, coming to the realization that she'd unconsciously put herself between the patch of grass and Barry. Heat ran to her face, tinting her cheeks red.

She straightened up, stiff as a plank, and bowed to the man, ""I... I am very sorry professor! I wasn't trying to... you see my friend here wanted to..." She was at a loss for words, she couldn't believe that the region's most prestigious Pokemon expert had caught her during such an embarassing moment.

For better or for worse, Barry opened his mouth to speak:

"Holy Beedrills!" The boy's eyes shot wide open and he placed both hands on his head as if he were about to rip his hair out. "Are you professor Rowan!? Like,  _the_  professor Rowan? I can't believe my freaking eyes!" His eyes went from the professor to her. "I told you we would meet him, look he's even taller than on TV! And he looks like an Ursaring like I told you, now we can finally get our Pokemon and start our journey and...!"

Inyssa placed both hands on top of his mouth, face turning red. She was probably strangling him a bit, but that wasn't important at the moment.

"Please disregard whatever he says, sir. He's simply over caffeinated at the moment".

Rowan's expression changed, becoming softer, and there was a glimpse of a smile on his eyes, "Well, aren't you two an interesting pair. Would you mind telling me what you were doing here?"

Barry finally managed to get off the choke-hold she was holding him in, and started talking without even taking the time to breathe, "We wanted to go to Sandgem so you would give us a Pokemon and we could become trainers!"

"Barry, shut up!" She growled at him.

Rowan narrowed his eyes, and Inyssa felt like she was being stared at through X-rays. He stroked his mustache with one hand, only speaking after a long silence.

"A Pokemon, eh? That's a strange request coming from kids reckless enough to go through tall grass without protection." He gave both of them a stern look. "Am I expected to reward that kind of behavior? What sort of professor would that make me?"

Inyssa felt her heart drop to her stomach, the inside of her skin itching as if a million ants were running under it. This couldn't be happening, she thought. To have someone like Rowan be so disappointed in them...

"I... I'm sorry, we..." She tried to say something, but her mouth was completely dry.

Just then, Barry put his arm between Rowan and her, "Hey, don't blame Niss! It was my fault, sir! I tried to convince her to do something stupid and she tried to stop me! If you're not going to give me a Pokemon then at least give her one. Then she can catch another one for me when you're not looking."

She turned toward Barry, not believing what she'd just heard. Rowan did so as well, his expression unreadable under that thick mustache.

"Well..." he whispered, looking down contemplatively, "you do seem like an honest and earnest boy. And you must have at least some common sense as to try to stop him from putting himself in danger." He turned his eyes to her. "How old are you two?"

"I'm seventeen and a half," Inyssa answered fast, not giving Barry any more opportunities to embarass both of them, "and Barry will be eighteen in a couple months".

Rowan seemed surprised, as much as he could with his usual stern expression, "Hold on, Barry Paladino from Twinleaf Town? And he just called you Niss, are you Inyssa Dawn by any chance?"

Both of them narrowed their eyes in confusion.

"How do you know that?" Inyssa asked.

"Yeah! What gives, gramps? Are we famous and we didn't knew it?"

"Gramps?" Rowan's mustache twitched a bit. "...In any case, I'll have you know I'm the head of Pokemon investigation in Sinnoh, and I have contacts with every trainer school in the region," he announced proudly. "I am expected to keep tabs on the most promising trainers of every town. I think I remember reading your names in Twinleaf's yearly student reports."

He looked at his wrist, where his Poketch was, and started fiddling with the controls.

"Ah, here it is! You're both at the top of your respective classes, it seems. Very high scores, at least when it comes to Pokemon battling," Inyssa felt her heart skip a beat, and next to her Barry formed the biggest, stupidest grin ever. "Then again, it's no wonder. The blood of distinguished trainers runs through your veins, does it not?"

Inyssa's smile froze, and she suddenly felt as if the route had grown a little bit colder. It was a good thing neither Rowan nor Barry were looking at her; otherwise they would've noticed the way her eyes went dull and distant for a moment.

"Y...yeah. I guess," she spat out, voice barely a whisper.

Rowan, still looking at the device on his wrist, didn't notice anything. He continued reading for a few seconds before he spoke again.

"I suppose... I might've judged the both of you too quickly."

Barry gasped so hard Inyssa thought he might've bursted a lung.

"Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Does that mean you're going to give us a Pokemon!?" He jumped in place like a Pachirisu on a sugar rush.

"These are strange circumstances for this to happen," Rowan nodded, "but I suppose that's the way some of the greatest trainers have started their journeys. Very well then, I will give you both a Pokemon as a way to express my patronage." He adjusted his tie and cleared his throat. "Wait for me here. My assistant is carrying the briefcase where I have my Pokeballs, and he must not be far."

The man turned his back on them and started walking toward the path leading to Verity Lake. Inyssa turned to Barry, who seemed to be vibrating with excitement.

"I can't believe your plan worked." She tried to suppress a smile, but her body betrayed her.

"I told you, I'm an unappreciated genius!" He put his arm around her, a wide smile stretching across his face. "Niss, we're gonna be famous! We'll be the greatest trainers in Sinnoh and it'll all be thanks to me!"

Inyssa couldn't help but laugh, and she put an arm around him as well, messing with his hair, "In Sinnoh? Aren't you falling a bit short? We'll be the best in the entire world! Although that's assuming you can keep up with me, banana head." A sly smile formed on her lips. "Remember our score?"

"Don't give me that crap, you're only ahead of me by a couple wins!" He pointed at her with his finger, as if giving her a warning. "Tell you what, whoever defeats Oreburgh's Gym Leader first wins the next point."

"We shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, we don't even have our Pokemon yet," she reminded him, trying to hide her excitement. "But I accept that challenge."

They kept snarking at each other for a couple minutes until the professor came back. He was accompanied by someone else: a boy their age, quite a lot shorter than Rowan and dressed in a weird outfit. On top of his short, black hair was an oversized red berret that almost covered his eyes. To Inyssa he looked like someone trying to pretend he was older and appearing ridiculous in the process.

"Is this them, professor?" The kid asked with a soft, fruity voice. "Are you sure about this? They look young."

"Yes Lucas, I'm sure," Rowan intervened before Inyssa or Barry could protest to his comment. "They are talented trainers, and I believe having a Pokemon with them will put them in less trouble than if they didn't have one."

He approached them with a briefcase in hand, nervousness clear in his voice, "H-hello, my name is Lucas. I'm Professor Rowan's assistant and..."

"Are our Pokemon in there!?" Barry almost trampled the poor kid, who jumped back a few inches at the blonde boy's excitement. "Which ones do we have to choose from!?"

"I... well..." Lucas backed off a couple steps, clearly frightened. Inyssa sighed at his friend's lack of tact.

"Sorry for that," she apologized on his behalf, faking a smile. If they wanted a Pokemon then at least one of them had to pretend to be polite. "I'm Inyssa, and this is my friend Barry. Nice to meet you."

"Oh, yeah..." He smiled shyly and nodded, "the pleasure is mine. I was trying to say that I have your Pokemon right here." He placed the briefcase on the ground, and opened it to reveal three red Pokeballs. "We only have three right now, but they're good Pokemon. They are Chimchar, Turtwig and Piplup. Choose whichever you want."

They were branded each with a sticker representing the Pokemon's type. Inyssa could feel her eyes gleaming at the sight of them, and expected Barry to be all over the briefcase, but when she turned to look at him she noticed him standing still, eyes on her.

"Come on, what are you waiting for?" he inquired, pointing at the briefcase. "You can choose one first. I'd feel bad if I got the best one before you had a chance to pick."

She smiled, and without hesitation her fingers closed around the one with the flame sticker. She always knew that she would start with a fire type if the opportunity presented itself to her. It was a strong choice and quite uncommon in Sinnoh, so it was strategically the best option.

Plus, it was the same type  _she_  had started with.

"Aw man, I wanted the fire one," Barry complained, placing his hands behind his head, "I guess that's what happens when you're such a gentleman. It doesn't matter, I'll just pick this one." He grabbed the Pokeball with the water sticker on it. "Piplup is still pretty cool."

"Yeah, what a gentleman, picking the one strong against mine," she snickered. "Well, only in theory. I'm still gonna be stronger."

Barry smiled, and he pointed the Pokeball at her with so much force it almost went flying from his hand, "Is that a challenge!? I've been waiting for this, our first official Pokemon battle!"

Lucas looked confused, and Rowan slightly amused. The grown man let out a strong laugh and picked up his briefcase.

"Ah, the wonders of having a rival. I remember when..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "Ah, I'm sure you don't want to hear the tale of an old man. I will be making my leave now, kids. I will wait for you in Sandgem Town, make sure you tell your parents about what happened before coming over." He looked at them for a couple seconds, smiling, as if they reminded him of something, "Let's go, Lucas! We still have a lot of paperwork to turn in."

Lucas waved goodbye to  them, and with that the kid and the old man took their leave, heading straight towards Sandgem Town. Inyssa stood still, not believing what had happened. She looked down at her Pokeball; it felt so real and heavy, she never expected to be holding one so soon. Something stirred inside her, a funny feeling in her stomach that sent heat to her entire body.

"Still wanna fight?" Barry asked, rolling the Pokeball on his finger like a basketball. "If I'm going to have my first official battle then I'd like it to be against you."

She avoided eye contact, smiling nervously, "Come on man, don't make it weird. Let's just try to kick each other's butt."

"That's the spirit!" he shouted, throwing his Pokeball into the air. "Come on out, Pedri!"

The Pokeball erupted in light revealing a small, blue creature with a round head, fins for hands and a sturdy looking beak. He looked around with his huge black eyes, confused as to where he was. Barry introduced himself in the most grandiose way possible, claiming to the Piplup that he was the best trainer in Sinnoh and that he was going to be his partner from now on; the Pokemon was even more confused after that.

"Anyway, your name is Pedri now, and we have to defeat her," he explained, pointing at Inyssa. "You think you're up for that?"

The Piplup looked over to where she was, and for a moment seemed frightened by her, but after breathing in deeply he composed himself and nodded.

Inyssa followed his example. From the beam of light emerged an orange and yellow creature with thin arms, fire burning from his short tail. He turned around , apparently much less confused about the whole situation. He looked at her expectantly, as if waiting for Inyssa to say something. She got on her knees to meet the Chimchar's eyes, not paying attention to how cold the dirt was, and attempted to smile.

"Hey there little guy," she spoke calmly. "I'm Inyssa, your new trainer, and I think I'm gonna name you Enma. Do you want to team up?"

The Chimchar moved his head to the side, studying her carefully, trying to judge whether she was worthy. He seemed satisfied enough, since he showed her a smile full of sharp teeth and turned towards Barry.

She stood back up and put herself at a reasonable distance for a Pokemon battle; Barry did the same. "Alright then. Ready?"

"You know it!" Barry stood in battle position, which was him just squatting a bit, "Pedri, Pound!" he yelled, gesticulating heavily.

"Use Scratch," Inyssa ordered without moving an inch.

The Piplup jumped straight towards his opponent, preparing to kick him in the face. Inyssa expected Enma to dodge, since he was probably faster.

The kick landed straight on his face, and he didn't move an inch. Pedri looked at him confused, not expecting to land a hit so easily. But Enma hadn't suffered much damage and his eyes were set on the Piplup, a huge smile on his face.

"What the... the heck is that thing made of? Come on Pedri, try again, Pound!"

"Enma, what are you doing?" Inyssa frowned, "I said use Scratch. Come on, don't embarrass me in our first fight."

Pedri backed up, nervous, and he jumped right back at him again, preparing for another kick. However this time the Chimchar dodged out of the way, moving left at the last second. Before the Piplup realized what was happening Enma was behind him, claws out and a grin pasted onto his face.

The battle was over as quickly as it started. The attack from Enma was devastating, sending the small penguin Pokemon straight into a tree, knocking him out with a single hit. Both Barry and Inyssa stared at the result, dumbfounded.

Barry ran towards his partner, returning him back to his Pokeball, "Come on, that's cheating! You got the one with crazy strength, not fair!"

"Hey, don't start sounding like a sore loser now," she smiled, equally surprised, "though I have to admit, that was better than I expected," she stared down at the Chimchar, "What was that? You could've ended the fight a lot quicker, why did you take that hit straight on?"

Enma shrugged and pointed at his left cheek, where Pedri had hit him. It didn't seem like he'd suffered much damage.

"He probably wanted to show just how much stronger he was than my Pokemon," Barry complained, arms crossed, "Great, you got a Pokemon with a bigger ego than yours, and that's saying something."

"Obviously it was my mastery as a trainer that made the difference," she said sarcastically, before kneeling down and patting the Chimchar on the head. "Good job buddy, but I'm gonna need you later to cross the route, so rest for now." She put him back in his Pokeball before he had the chance to protest.

"That was just a fluke and you know it," Barry put Pedri's Pokeball in his bag, and he pointed right at Inyssa. "I'll catch a bunch of Pokemon and I'll challenge you later! Now I gotta go back to my house to tell my mom that I'm travelling, and to get food. I don't wanna starve on the road."

Inyssa's smile faded as quick as it had appeared. Right, she had to tell her mother the good news. Suddenly all the excitement from having her first Pokemon evaporated. She sighed deeply, and tried not to look too down.

"Yeah, me too."

"Alright then, I'll go first. Let's meet here in two hours," he was still pointing at her. "Remember, if you're late you owe me all your money!"

He took off before she had a chance to say anything, leaving her alone in the middle of the route.

She looked at the Pokeball in her hands, feeling a lot heavier than before. The wind was howling and yet she stood still, lost in thought, enduring the cold. She had dreamed for so long about this moment; getting her first Pokemon, having her first rival battle, meeting the profesor. And still...

"We'll make it through," she said to no one. "now is not the time to worry about that."

She attached the Pokeball to her belt and started walking towards Twinleaf, hopefully for the last time.


	3. The Man in the Lake.

Inyssa's gaze was so set on the wall's clock that she could visualize its gaudy floral pattern every time she closed her eyes. Her head lay on her arms, which were resting on top of her living room's table. Next to her was a medium size, finely crafted white backpack, full of everything she could possibly need for her journey: food, clothes, medicine and... something else she didn't feel like thinking about at the moment.

The cold had subsided somewhat, and strong rays of sunlight filtered through the windows into the room, slowly warming up the place. It was almost twelve o' clock, which she constantly muttered to herself under her breath. She had finished packing by ten, foolishly hoping for that for once her mother would wake up at a reasonable hour. But alas:  _Hope and experience, hats and weather_ , as her favorite writer Shauntal liked to say.

Usually she'd simply yell at her to get up, but considering the ocassion she thought maybe that was too aggressive of an approach. Yeah, nothing like waking up to your daughter telling you she's going away in a dangerous journey;  _That'd go well_ , she thought.

At twelve ten she heard her mother's grunts upstairs. Ten minutes later her footsteps echoed through the floorboards into the room below, and by twelve thirty the woman finally came down from her room, messy dark hair and eyes barely open, with huge shadows under them.

She spoke with a melodious and firm voice, with a hint of raspiness hidden in it, "Good morning, dear."

Inyssa grit her teeth, the  _dear_  coming from her mother piercing her ears like poison.

"I made coffe, though it must be cold by now." She pointed at the kitchen. "I need to talk to you, so it'd be great if you sobered up as soon as possible."

"Oh... that's lovely," she replied between yawns, weakly scratching her face, "but I think I'll just have water. Coffee can mess up your teeth you know."

 _Coming from someone who used to drink herself to sleep every night?_  she thought bitterly. 

She bit her lip and tried to hide the venom in her eyes, "That's nice. But as I said, I need to talk to you about something."

"Can this wait, Niss? Please?" Her mother pleaded, almost falling asleep on her feet. "I had a rough night, and I need some peace and quiet right now. You don't mind, right honey?"

If Inyssa had something in her hand it would have snapped in half.

"I'm serious. This is important," she repeated, reminding herself to breathe slowly. "Today I went with Barry to route 201 and..."

She was interrupted by her mother raising her hand, "I said not now," her honeyed voice was breaking up, letting out a hint of impatience. "You can tell me about you and Barry playing later, ok? Now, can you go to the pharmacy and get me a couple of aspirines? That would be wonderful."

Inyssa stood up so fast she almost toppled the table into the ground. She could feel the blood rushing to her face, along with the pain of her fingernails digging into her palms.

"I'm going away!" she spat at her. "Barry and I met Professor Rowan today, and he gave us a Pokemon. I'm going on a journey with him and we're going to challenge the Gym Leaders." She was out of breath by how fast she said all that. "That's all. Thanks for listening, I'm going now."

Her mother froze, as if not yet fully grasping what she had just heard. After a couple seconds her eyes went wide like plates and she almost tripped to the ground trying to get to Inyssa.

"Wait, what!? What do you mean... a Pokemon journey? How did you...?" The gears inside her head started turning, being slightly slowed down by the soporifics in her body.

"I'm not going to repeat myself," Inyssa said scathingly. "I came to say goodbye. Don't worry, I'll be back by summer or autumn, it depends how strong the Gym leaders are."

"But... but you're not of age yet, are you?" She blinked fast, a look of confusion on her face. "You're... only seventeen, right? Are you sure about this? Don't you want to... wait a little bit? You're still young Niss, what if..."

Inyssa shot her an icy look, "Nothing's gonna happen to me."

"It's just... I..." her mother put her hands on Inyssa's shoulders, and she allowed it for once. "I hadn't realized you grew up so much. I mean, you know what they say, time flies, right?" She smiled at her, but Inyssa did not smile back. "Are you... sure?"

"Yes, I am." She wanted to sound strong and secure, but her voice was wavering.

Her mother stared at her for a while, as if trying to determine something from her expression. Her hands strongly gripped Inyssa's shoulders, not wanting to let go, and she tried to pretend she didn't notice the sudden wetness on her eyes.

Her voice came out wavering and slow, "I should've seen this coming. First your father, then Shadi. And now you're going away too," she let out a sigh. "Just... promise me you won't follow in their footsteps Niss. Please... you're the only one I have left."

As she heard her mother's words something sharp began to grow on the inside of her chest, "I'll be okay, don't worry about it," she shrugged dissmisively. "I'll send you letters."

She grabbed her backpack and headed for the door, avoiding her mother's eyes. She was almost there when she heard her voice again.

"Inyssa..." she whispered, tone fearful. "Is it... is it because of me?".

Her mouth was dry, and her hand was grabbing the doorknob so strongly that it would've broken if it weren't made of metal. She opened her mouth and tried to think of something hurtful to say.

"It's not," was all she could muster. "Bye mom. I'll miss you."

 

* * *

 

 

Before she knew it she'd arrived at the intersection of Route 201. Lost in thought, she'd almost walked right into the tall grass, until Barry stopped her. She hadn't even noticed him standing there; he stared at her with a puzzled look on his face.

"Hey there lady, don't you know it's dangerous to go alone around these places?" he smiled nervously, and Inyssa tried to do the same. "Uh... hey Niss, are you okay? You didn't even see me."

Inyssa straightened herself up and moved a bang of hair that was obscuring her vision, "Sorry about that. Just thinking about something else, you know?"

She avoided Barry's eyes, but the boy immediately understood the problem. As dim as he was, he had been Inyssa's friend for years, and he knew that the only thing that could get her so down was a talk with her mother.

"It's all cool, I'm not the type of guy that holds grudges." He placed both hands behind his head and smiled. "Besides, you gave me time to train Pedri. Starly and Bidoof are much easier to beat than I imagined."

Inyssa gave him a non verbal thanks for not pressing on the subject.

"Is that really all there is around here?" she asked, disheartened. "Well, I guess I have to start my team with something."

"Oh! Oh!" Barry started jumping in place with a gleam in his eyes. She knew exactly what that meant. "Niss, I have an idea! A really, really good one, even better than today's idea!"

"Now now, let's not push our luck. Even a broken clock is right twice a day."

"Just hear me out. See that path right there?" he pointed at the forked road that went away from Route 210 into a bunch of pinetrees. "That way is Lake Verity. Now that we have Pokemon I bet we can go there!"

Inyssa narrowed her eyes. Lake Verity was a place that no one in the town was allowed to go to unless they had a Pokemon with them. Even then, most of the trainers in town seemed to avoid the place. She had once asked Shadi about it, and her sister's answer had been nothing short of cryptic.

_That place is very... ancient, even more so than the route that surrounds it. You should stay away, for your own good._

"I don't think that's a good idea. We won't get different Pokemon there if it's so close to Route 201."

"Unless..." Barry paused for a moment, probably for dramatic timing, "the legendary Pokemon is there."

She narrowed her eyes, wondering if she'd heard him right, "That's... really dumb. If the pixie legendary really lives in there someone would've seen it by now."

"Unless..." he started doing the dramatic pause again, but Inyssa punched him in the arm softly. "Agh! Fine, but what if it only shows up when close to a great trainer or someone with a pure heart? I mean, we definitely don't have the second one, but we're so good with Pokemon that it should be good enough, right?"

She tried to argue that the legend of the pixie Pokemon was nothing but a bunch of bull, but Barry was having none of it. Inyssa sighed, defeated, and threw her arms into the air. It was impossible to argue with Barry.

She turned around towards the path and stomped the dirt beneath her as she walked, "Fine, let's hurry it up. I want to reach Sandgem before the sun goes down."

 

* * *

 

 

The path became narrower and darker the more they advanced, trees growing in size and casting a deeper shadow on top of them. Inyssa swore she could feel the temperature drop way more than it should have, and even strangest yet they didn't encounter a single Pokemon on their way. She walked with her arms crossed, trying to protect herself from the cold, while to her left Barry went at a much slower pace than usual. He seemed nervous as well, evidenced by the fact he wasn't talking her ear off for once.

"Keep your eyes open," she said, barely above a whisper.

"Oh, now you believe there's something in here?" Barry intended to sound playful, but he came off as scared.

"There's nothing here, but... just in case."

They arrived at the feet of the lake, after passing through an unusually dense patch of grass and trees. The dirt close to the water was almost frozen, and several banks of snow were piled up under the pinetrees close to them. Despite the cold, the actual lake looked very inviting. The cristaline water was glistening against the light of the sun, almost blinding them, and for a second, Inyssa felt the strange need to jump in and start swimming.

"Jeez, this place's giving me the willies." Barry whispered, rubbing his arms vigorously.

She took a couple whiffs of the air, nose wrinkled, "Something feels wrong. It's not supossed to be this..."

Someone was there. They hadn't noticed him before due to the mist covering the entire lake, but only a few feet from the water stood a tall, slim man. He was dressed in a black and grey suit, hands behind his back. She gestured at Barry, who was as surprised as she was, and they both moved closer, trying not to make too much noise.

"The stillness of this place... it truly is beautiful."

Both the kids froze. They shouldn't have been able to hear him from that distance, and yet it felt like they were standing next to him. His voice was sharp and cold and both of them felt a painful chill up their spines at the sound of it. Inyssa grabbed Barry's arm without thinking, arching her back like a scared Glameow.

"It's been so long," he continued, not paying any mind to them. "Why do you continue to avoid me, my friend? I have forgiven you for what you did to me, so why? Are you that afraid? So much that you would abandon your home and your brethren." He sounded so... odd, like he was trying to emote through his voice in a very forced manner. "The flowing time... the expanding space... I shall weave them to create a new, perfect world. My name is Cyrus; remember it well, my dear Mesprit."

As he turned around the pale blue of his eyes cut through the mist, meeting with Inyssa's. Her heart dropped, and she felt her veins turning to ice. There was no word to describe the terrible cold and apathy behind his gaze.

They exchanged looks for what felt like a minute, and then the man began to walk. He moved as quietly as a ghost, hands behind his back, and only stopped once he was inches away from the both of them. Inyssa could now see him clearly; his face was as pale as snow, with marked cheekbones and enormous bags under his eyes. 

"Allow me to pass," he ordered.

Their bodies moved before they could reply. The man walked between them, not even glancing in their direction, and went up towards the path that they had just walked through. As soon as he was out of sight Inyssa breathed a sigh of relief and let go of Barry's hand.

"The heck was that about?" he asked, whispering. "Who was that freak?"

She tried to force her legs to stop shaking, "He said his name was Cyrus. Other than that, no idea. And I don't want to find out, either."

"Did you hear what he said though?" Barry's eyes shone again, and he smiled for the first time since they'd arrived to the lake. "He mentioned the legendary Pokemon! He knew Mesprit's name!"

She crossed her arms, "Yes, but he also said it wasn't here anymore. Normally I wouldn't listen to a crazy guy's ramblings, but he seemed... dangerous. Maybe he's right, and Mesprit left a long time ago."

"Oh come on, it's obviously hiding in the lake," Barry pointed at the misty body of water, smiling. "It must be waiting for us."

Inyssa was too late to stop him as he headed for the lake, fast as a Jolteon. Luckily he stopped right before reaching the water, so he wasn't going to dive in. Unfortunately his idea wasn't much better.

"Hey Mesprit! It's me, the legendary trainer you've been waiting for!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. "Come and face me so I can catch you!"

His voice echoed all throughout the lake, fading a few seconds after and submerging the lake into silence once more. Both of them simply stood there, waiting for some kind of response; Barry expecting the legendary Pokemon to appear, and Inyssa feared a bunch of Starly would come and attack her friend. They waited for almost a minute, until Inyssa's patience ran out.

She came down to where he was and grabbed his arm strongly, "I'm telling you, it's not here. Let's go, we don't want to keep the professor wait..."

She felt a sudden chill, and the rushing sound of a gust of wind hit the back of her head. A grumbling noise came from behind them, and both trainers turned around as quickly as possible, Pokeballs in hand. A few feet from then, the grass started rustling.

"It's here!" Barry screamed, exctatic.

"No fucking way," she whispered.

The grass kept rustling in their direction. They both prepared for battle, but Inyssa knew that if that was a legendary Pokemon they would have zero chance to beat it. The only reason she agreed to go with Barry was to get him off her back. If Mesprit really was there...

A dark shape jumped at them. They were about to throw their Pokeballs, when they saw what emerged from the grass. Contrary to what they imagined, it was just a small rodent, fuzzy and brown, with long buck teeth.

"Oh," Barry's expression changed in an instant, his smile vanishing, "it was just a Bidoof."

Inyssa couldn't help but laugh at her friend's heartbreak. She patted him on the back and stepped in front of him, Pokeball still in hand.

"Maybe next time buddy," she teased him. "Let me take care of this one, I need to start catching Pokemon if I'm hoping to get stronger."

She opened the Pokeball, releasing Enma through a flash of light.

"Are you sure you want that thing?" Barry asked, raising an eyebrow.

She shrugged, "I need to start somewhere. Besides, every Pokemon can be powerful with the right trainer." She headed next to her starter. "Now Enma, use..."

The Chimchar dissapeared in a flash, running at full speed towards the poor Bidoof. Before anyone could react, the rodent went flying towards the grass, landing with a resounding hit, the same way Pedri had done before. She seemed barely concious by the time Inyssa got to her.

"Jeez, that thing is savage!" Barry laughed nervously. "Sure you don't want to trade, Niss?"

She stomped her feet and curled her fingers into fists, "What do you think you're doing, Enma? You have to wait for my command, if that attack was just a bit stronger you could've seriously hurt her!"

Enma shrugged, clearly not caring for her desire to catch such a weak Pokemon.

"I'm gonna have to teach you manners later," she put him back in his Pokeball. "As for this girl..." she barely had to aim to get the Bidoof, she wasn't even moving. With a couple wiggles, the Pokeball closed itself, confirming her first catch. "Great, your name is going to be Bertha."

"Yikes, I'm glad I'm not one of your Pokemon," Barry whispered to himself. "Now that you took care of that dangerous beast, we should get the heck out of this lake. I'm freezing my butt out here."

"Yeah, we need to get to Sandgem quickly." She saved the Pokeball in her belt. "I want to get my Pokedex as soon as possible."

"Let's get going then!" he yelled as he lowered his knees and pointed west with his finger.

He put himself in running position once again, but this time Inyssa was fast enough to grab him before he began sprinting.

"Wait a second!" She grabbed her backpack with her free hand, and started looking for something inside. "Before you go, your mom told me to give you this."

She handed him a big paper parcel, folded three times and with a small drawing of a green heart. Inside there was what appeared to be a very detailed map of the region.

"She said you forgot this because you ran off so quickly," she explained. "She also gave one to me, because she's great and you're like... the worst son of all time."

He grabbed the parcel and stared at it excitedly, "Aw, that's so considerate! Thanks Niss, I don't know what I'd do without you guys."

"That's what I'm here for, to get you out of trouble," she smiled, and then remembered something. "Oh... right. There's something else I have to give you."

"Huh? Did my mom pack something else for us? Is it food? Please let it be food!"

Inyssa tried not to let herself be too embarassed by it, while looking for Barry's gift. After a couple seconds she found it, and took it out of the backpack. It had the shape of a rectangle, and was as big as a tea box. It was made out of finely crafted ceramic, and was painted with oils in a sharp yellow color.

"Here, I made it for you," she said, trying to sound nonchalant. "It's a badge case, for when you get through the Gym Leaders."

Barry grabbed the case, and stared at it for a couple seconds. His expression was unreadable.

"Wow... thanks, Niss," he looked at her and smiled brightly, and Inyssa felt something jump inside her. "It's awesome, I'll use it all the time!"

"I mean, hopefully you'll only need to use it eight times," she smiled back. "I knew you would probably lose the badges once you got them without a case, and I couldn't have that. We still have to face each other for the title of Champion, remember?"

He gave her a thumbs up. "We'll get there Niss, trust me. And once we beat the Champion, we'll decide once and for all who's the best."

"Just don't feel bad once I kick your ass on top of Victory Road."

"Yeah yeah, keep yapping," he turned around again, ready to leave. "We'll se about that once we reach Oreburgh. Until then, see you in Sandgem! And don't keep me waiting!"

He ran away as fast as usual, once again leaving her alone there. She was starting to notice a pattern.


	4. Sour Memories

Inyssa thought training her Pokemon wouldn't be too hard, considering her talent, but as her Bidoof flew in her direction and hit her in the stomach, sending her straight to the floor, she realized it might be a tad more complicated than she first assumed.

Flying above them both was a small bird Pokemon, flapping his wings agressively. She had encountered the Starly almost at the entrance of Sandgem Town, and figured it would be a great chance to both train Bertha and catch a new companion. She hadn't considered that the little flying bugger would be so tough, however.

"Ugh... come on Bertha, get up!" she growled, struggling to get to her feet; she was covered in dirt and her vision was partly obscured by her hat. "We've got him on the ropes!"

The Bidoof turned to look at her, legs trembling, and made sounds of pain that might have been slightly exaggerated. With her head she pointed at Inyssa's belt, where Enma's Pokeball was resided.

Inyssa shook her head, "He can't help you with this. We are a team, but we also have be strong individually if we're to challenge the Gym leaders." She tried to form a reassuring smile. "I know you can do this Bertha, because you are  _my_  Bidoof and there is not a single Pokemon I can't achieve victory with!"

Bertha seemed to gain strenght from her trainer's words, and with renewed determination she turned toward the agressive Starly. The bird Pokemon shrieked and threw himself against the Bidoof, who did the same. Their heads clashed together, but Bidoof's attack was more powerful and pushed Starly back with enough force to send him to the ground. His strength left him as he fell unconscious.

"See? Told you we could win," Inyssa approached the Bidoof and patted her on the head; the small Pokemon was hurt all over her body but was still smiling. "You earned your rest, great job."

She returned her to her ball and sighed, relieved. She could've probably defeated the Starly with much more ease if she'd used Enma, but she needed to build confidence in the other members of her team if she wanted them to get stronger. From her bag she grabbed another Pokeball and threw it at the unconcious Starly without paying much attention. It wiggled thrice, as it did, and then locked itself with a digital beep.

She grabbed the Pokeball and examined it closely, "Starly, eh? Very good attackers, quite fast and with access to a myriad of moves. I'm sure you'll be a great addition, and I think I'll call you... Steven," she smiled, satisfied with the name as she put the ball in her belt.

With that particular obstacle out of the way she finally made her way to Sandgem Town's entrance. A huge, wooden sign rested atop two thick pillars along the path, announcing the town's name and some of the most important facilities that one could find there, like the Pokemon Center, the Laboratory and the Trainer School; the two latter of which she was more interested in.

Inyssa strolled through the small town, in part looking for Barry, but also just taking a minute to admire her surroundings. It was quiet, much more than Twinleaf ever was even without her friend causing a ruckus. The houses and buildings seemed much older than anything she'd seen, most of them made of sturdy rock and obsidian instead of bricks and cement. The town felt ancient and still, to a strange degree. It was beautiful, but daunting.

After about ten minutes of walking she finally found the lab, which seemed to be one the only modern building around, to the extent that it looked completely out of place. To her surprise the porch was surrounded by a field of flowers, and at the side there was a small mailbox with the name  _Rowan_  engraved in it. Were it not for that she'd think the house belonged to some old, kind lady.

She waited in front of the door, readying herself to enter. She'd already met the professor once, but he was still a very intimidating man; she had to make a good impression this time.

A plan that went out the window when Rowan himself opened the door and found her standing in front of it like some sort of stalker. She froze, as the man stopped and looked at her sternly.

She put a hand behind her head, trying to look casual, "H...hey, professor. How... how's it going... man?"

Rowan raised an eyebrow, and let out a small chuckle.

"Well hello there, Inyssa." He tipped his hat. "I've been waiting for you and your friend, though I expected you later tonight at the very earliest."

"Oh, yeah... well what can I say," she glanced to the side, avoiding the man's gaze. "I was just... so excited to start my journey. I couldn't wait."

Rowan stared, as if sensing something was off. Luckily, he seemed to realize that there was no point on pressing the issue, so he changed the subject.

"Nevertheless, I'm on my way toward the Trainer School right now." He glanced north. "Your friend Barry stopped by half an hour ago, but he left before I could give him his Pokédex."

She nodded, "He does tend to do that. So he went to the Trainer school?"

"Indeed, as soon as I mentioned it he started jumping in place and saying something about challenging all the students. "He stroked his mustache contemplatively. "Before I knew it he was already gone. Lucas went looking for him, but I had to arrange some papers before following."

"Well, I could accompany you if you want, sir. I'll make sure to scold Barry for being so disrespectful, too," she tried to sound offended by her friend's actions, altough she also considered defeating the school's students for experience. "I could carry your briefcase as well, it may be a long way to the Trainer school."

"Thank you for the offer Inyssa, but I'm not that old yet," he smiled , though it was hard to see due to the mustache. "However I'd like you to come with me, that way I can give both of you a Pokedex so you can officially start your journey." He straightened his hat, and closed the door behind him. "Alright then, let's get going. We should finish this whole ordeal before the sun goes down."

The sky was starting to darken by the time they arrived, though they probably still had an hour at least before night finally set in. As they approached Inyssa noticed that The Trainer School looked more like the other buildings in the city; an old, worn building that still had a lustrous appearance to it.

The inside looked much more modern, however; the first floor was a huge room divided by a wall; and in the center of it there was a small battle arena. An honestly staggering amount of kids surrounded the place, yelling and making surprised sounds at something that neither of them could see from where they were.

Rowan narrowed his eyes, "This place isn't usually so loud."

From the pile of kids emerged Lucas, gasping for air as he made his way towards them. His weird berret was covering part of his face and his cheeks were red as tomatoes. Inyssa thought that he looked kind of cute that way.

"Professor! I'm here," he adjusted himself and bowed to the old man. "I'm sorry sir, I told him it wouldn't be a good idea and he should have gone back to the lab, but he just wouldn't listen to me!"

Inyssa snorted, "Gee, I wonder who he's talking about."

"Calm down Lucas," Rowan put a hand on his shoulder, reassuringly. "Tell me what's happening."

"It's Barry, sir! He challenged all the students and..."

The boy was cut off by the sound of something crashing into the nearest wall. Everyone turned to see a small, orange Pokemon laying unconcious at the other side of the arena. Above the beaten Buizel there was a Starly, proudly flapping her wings and flying around the room. She looked hurt, but apparently not enough to stop her from fighting.

"Yeah, take that!" Barry's voice resonated from the center of the room. "Good job Paulette! That's the fifth Pokemon in a row!"

Inyssa pushed aside everyone near her, trying to get closer. When she made her way to the middle of the arena she saw her friend laughing at a poor trainer who must have been around their age. Next to him Pedri was resting after what must have been quite a number of battles.

"So? Is that all?" he asked the crowd, smiling from ear to ear. "Is there another best trainer from this school?"

All the younger students started clapping and yelling, while the older, defeated ones stood silently, glaring daggers at Barry.

She approached him, smiling, and put a hand on his shoulder, "Man, if this is what we're facing then this journey's gonna be easy."

"Oh! Oh, hey Niss did you see that?" Barry jumped excitedly after realizing she was there, and pointed at the boy he just beat. "That was just training for our next fight! Sorry I didn't leave any of them for you."

"Eh, I wasn't interested in fighting these losers anyway," she lied, shrugging. "Though I'm happy to see you're taking this rivalry seriously."

Before they could keep yapping at each other, Rowan cleared his throat, making everyone nearby shut up and look at him. The man congratulated Barry and urged the rest of the students to go back to class, and Inyssa was surprised that they all listened to him without second thought. The man must command a lot of reputation around town, she thought.

"Well well, I have to say I'm impressed," he addressed Barry after the four of them were left alone. "Altough disrupting class to challenge my students is something I would usually be crossed about, I'll turn a blind eye to it this time, as a sign of my patronage."

Barry looked down, blushing, "Oh, yeah... sorry about that. I was just so excited when I heard there were a lot of trainers like me here."

"It's understandable," the man nodded. "However, you left before I could give you your Pokedex and credentials. But now that you're both here, we can finally proceed with that. Lucas, if you may..."

Inyssa's heart jumped a bit, and she could see that Barry was just as excited as she was. She couldn't believe it; she knew that they both already had Pokemon, but getting a Pokedex and trainer card was the true proof that they were embarking on the League Challenge. Lucas looked around in his backpack and took out a small, square laptop as he approached them.

"Alright then, now that I'm not being trampled by a bunch of kids..." he glanced at Barry, altough more jokingly than mad. "I can now legitimize you as official trainers of Sinnoh. Let's see here..."

He took out a couple red, electronic devices from his backpacks, what Inyssa assumed were their Pokedex, and connected them both to the jacks on the laptop. He typed on it for a while, configurating them with their personal information.

"Your Pokedex will serve as your most important source of information while traveling the region," Rowan explained. "It will give you data on any kind of Pokemon you may encounter; including types, moves and behaviour. Anything you could use for making your battles easier."

"And you can also surf the internet and play games with it," Lucas mentioned, grinning. "Alright, that should be it. Now to register your trainer IDs. Let's see, Paladino and Daw... wait... what?" He stopped and narrowed his eyes, mouth slightly open.

The professor twitched his mustache and looked down at him, "Is there something wrong, Lucas?"

Barry and Inyssa looked at each other, heart in their throats. Did they do something wrong? Were they not going to get their Pokedex? Her stomach revolted at the thought of it.

"It's just... there's someone else here on the records besides them," Lucas squinted. "Another Dawn, by the name of... Shadi," he pronounced it slowly as his mouth fell and his eyes opened wide. "No way..."

Inyssa stopped breathing, and she could feel a horrible cold hitting her spine like needles. At her side, Barry turned at her, gulping. Professor Rowan's expression was unreadable.

She tried to speak, to tell Lucas that it must be a strange coincidence, but her mouth was completely dry. The boy didn't even notice her expression, he was staring directly at the screen of his computer.

"I can't believe it, I knew your last name sounded familiar!" he smiled excitedly, and Inyssa curled her fingers into fists. "Shadi Dawn was that really famous trainer, wasn't she? The one who got through the Elite Four a couple years back, I saw it on the news! She must be your sister, righ..."

He looked up at her, and his smile dissapeared as soon as their eyes met. Inyssa's glare stung him like fire. She didn't realize what she looked like, nor the fact that she was breathing heavily or that she was clenching her fists so much she was hurting herself. Behind her, Barry was doing gestures at Lucas telling him to stop talking, and Rowan was avoiding everyone's eyes. The entire room was filled with silence, until Lucas spoke again.

"I... uhm... I'm sorry, did I..." he muttered as his body language clearly said he wanted to get as far from Inyssa as possible. "I didn't mean to..."

Inyssa's opened her mouth to speak, and what came out was more poison than words. "Its fine. Can I have my Pokedex now?" She extended her hand in a way that said that it wasn't a request.

Lucas finished updating the devices and gave it to them in complete silence. Inyssa simply put it inside her bag and adjusted her hat, foolishly trying to act like nothing was wrong.

"I'll be going now," she said, voice as sharp as a knife. "It was a pleasure, professor. I'll head to Jubilife tomorrow; I hope we can meet again."

And with that she went away first for once, while the other three stood looking at her. She could feel their eyes on the back of her head, but she didn't care. Only half paying attention she threw her bag on her shoulder and started heading for the Pokemon Center.

In the middle of the arena the three of them were quiet, until Lucas spoke again.

"What... happened? Did I do something wrong?" he looked at Rowan worriedly.

"Don't worry about it Lucas, you couldn't have known." The voice of the man was low, and his gaze was distant. "Shadi Dawn... she used to be my student, and I was her patron, just like I am for Barry and Inyssa."

"But why did she get like that when I said her name? Is she..." he stopped himself after thinking about it. "Is she... dead?"

"We don't know," for the first time Barry spoke, voice devoid of its usual energy. "She dissapeared two years ago ago when she was training on Victory Road for a rematch against the Champion. No one's heard of her since. It's kind of a touchy subject for Niss, that's why she... reacted that way."

Barry didn't seem annoyed with Lucas, though it was clear that he wasn't happy about what had happened.

"But... how? She was one of the greatest trainers of the region, who could have...?"

"No one knows," sighed Rowan, "and no one has a theory about what happened either. One of my best students..." he looked at the distance, lost in thought. "In any case, you probably shouldn't mention her in Inyssa's presence."

Lucas lowered his head, a sour feeling growing in his chest, "I'm sorry. I had no idea..."

"Hey, it's okay man," Barry attempted to smile and gave the boy a pat on the shoulder. "It's like the professor said, you couldn't have known about it." He started heading towards the door. "I should go find her."

And with that he exited the room, his usual cheery demeanor completely absent.

 

* * *

 

 

It was the dead of night by the time Inyssa reached the Pokemon Center. She'd been walking for almost an hour, gaze lost and wandering without paying much attention to the path ahead. She was so distracted she had tumbled and crashed on signs a couple times, which didn't help with her terrible mood.

Why did it always happen? she thought. Every time she was having a good time and just forgetting about everything someone had to mention her family and ruin her day. Was it because she was trying so hard to get away from it? No, that made no sense, she was just being stupid. She slapped herself in the face. She had to stop being so mopey all the time, it was unbecoming of the future Champion. And she also had to stop hitting herself in public places; she didn't want people to think she was nuts.

She could see the blinding light of the Pokemon Center less than a block away, looking warm and safe as usual. She forced herself to smile; she would get a delicious meal, she would have a full night's sleep in a comfy bed and tomorrow she would make her way to Jubilife, and no sad thoughts or insensitive nerds would get in the way of tha...

Barely a few feet from the entrance she noticed something; at the foot of one of the windows of the Pokemon Center there was what seemed like a small red pile, which happened to be moving. Inyssa kneeled in front of it, her curiosity taking the better of her, and tried to identify what it was amidst the darkness.

"Oh, what the hell..." she whispered to herself after taking a closer look.

What looked like a pile to her was in fact a Pokemon. It was the size of her backpack and had a red tint all over her body, with two huge black eyebrows. The Kricketot was curled up in a ball, trembling and presumably trying to sleep in the cold. Her body was covered in scratches and other injuries, as if she'd been in a really ugly battle recently.

"What happened to you?" she extended a hand over the Pokemon but she recoiled from the touch, growling with the small strenght she had. "Who did this to you?"

A shimmer caught her eye. At the side of the Kricketot two pieces of metal lay, covered in dirt. Inyssa picked them up; they appeared to be the two halves of a broken Pokeball. She held them in her hands, eyes narrowed and heat going up to her face. She knew exactly what it meant; this Pokemon had been abandoned.

Determined, she took off her overall and put it around the Kricketot, trying to keep her warm. She kept growling weakly, trying to get away from what she must have thought was someone who wanted to hurt her.

Inyssa struggled with keeping her on her arms on top of the chilling cold covering her entire body, "It's okay, please stop moving. I need to get you to the nurse, you're badly injured."

She didn't knew if the Kricketot could hear her, but whether it was because she was running out of energy or because she decided to trust her, the Pokemon stopped moving. Inyssa could feel her breathing as heavy and irregular, and from up close her injuries looked even worse. She grit her teeth, horrified. Who could have done something like this?

"I am not going to hurt you," Inyssa spoke, voice full of determination. "I'll get you fixed up, you need to trust me."

The Kricketot slowly opened her eyes, staring directly at Inyssa. They were a pale, muddy green, and they emitted a warmth that reminded her of someone, of times long gone.

"In the meantime, you'll need a nickname," she gave the poor Pokemon her best friendly smile, which wasn't anything to write home about. "How about Shadi? I think it fits you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting into the meat of Inyssa's character, or at least starting to. This is also the first really important OC I've introduced, which I hope won't upset anyone.


	5. Forest of Steel.

Even with the heater all the way up the Pokemon Center still felt cold to Inyssa. Sitting on one of the sofas across the counter her body was completely still, limbs frozen and hands not letting go of the cup of hot chocolate that the nurse had given her. Her muscles ached from not moving and she could feel her breathing slow and painful , the frigid air turning her lips and throat dry.

Her blinks came slowly as she moved her gaze from the door leading to the nursery and looked at Barry instead. He was in the couch across hers, body covered in a thick blanket she'd placed over him once he'd fallen asleep. She promised him that she would do the same after finishing her drink, just to stop him from worrying so much. She had lied. The boy had found her only a couple minutes after she gave the injured Pokemon to the nurse, and for once in his life he held his tongue and simply kept her company while they waited.

The door opened, bathing her face with light and making her grunt like a sleepy Beartic. She could see the nurse's silhouette aproaching, so she made an effort to get up despite her body protesting.

"How's Shadi doing?" She spoke without thinking, and realized she'd never told the nurse that name. "I mean... how's Kricketot doing?"

The nurse showed her a gentle smile and whispered as to not wake up Barry, "Her wounds weren't that deep, so I think she'll be fine. Unfortunately she's still scared and might need to rest here for the night, as should you," she spoke with a warm, motherly tone.

"Can I talk with her?" She asked. "Or just stay with her?"

"Now now, you really should get yourself to bed." The woman put a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes. "It will do you no good to stay up all night, young lady. You'll see her tomorrow morning, after eating a nice breakfast and having a full night's sleep as a developing trainer like you should."

Inyssa felt heat rushing to her face; she wasn't used to people being so nice to her. She would've liked it if it weren't against her current objective.

"Please, just this time," she pleaded, making her best attempt at Poochyena's eyes; altough she wasn't as good at it as Barry. "It's just... she shouldn't be alone there, not if she's scared."

She could see the nurse's expression shifting, as if considering her options. Finally she closed her eyes and sighed, being defeated by the enchanting power of a sad, young seventeen year old girl.

"I can't say no to that face," she frowned. "Fine, but don't tell anybody. I don't need all my rooms full of worried trainers."

She guided her to Kricketot's room while trying to avoid making too much noise. All around her there were kids like her and Barry sleeping on the big, comfy sofas, and a couple of them even holded hands while resting, something that gave Inyssa a though that made her glad no one could see the color of her face.

They entered the room, and her eyes had to adjust to the sudden light which felt like a hammer to the face. It was small, only enough room for a bed, a couple metal tables and a small chair next to where Kriketot was resting. She noticed the usual hospital smell trying to be concealed by what felt like an entire bottle of room fragance, which only made the place feel more uncomfortable. The Pokemon was tucked in with a white blanket, only her head in sight.

The nurse approached the Kricketot with hands behind her back, as to not appear hostile, "How are you feeling, sweetie? Sorry to bother you, but there's someone who wants to see you."

Inyssa awkwardly strolled towards the side of the bed, trying to make herself as unthreatening as possible. The Kricketot's eyes were wide open, staring at everything around her, and her body language suggested that she wanted nothing less than to run away. She could relate to that feeling.

"Hey there Sh... gal, how are you feeling?" She spoke in hushed tones, her voice rough and throaty.

Shadi averted her gaze from Inyssa, first looking at the nurse and then back to her. It was as if she wanted to tell her something.

"Oh, right." She turned toward the nurse and whispered in her ear. "Can I get a moment alone with her? No offense, but I think she'll be nervous if you're here."

"I understand," she nodded. "It was a pity but I had to use force to anesthetize her, so she'll have a hard time trusting me. Make sure you take care of her, all right?"

She waited until the nurse was gone, and then she sat in the chair next to the bed, letting out a big sigh. Both of them stayed still in silence until she finally got out the words she wanted to say.

"Look, I get it. I get how you're feeling," she tried to sound more confident than she was, for the Kricketot's sake. "You're scared. Someone you knew left you, and you don't know what to do. And yeah, it sucks."

She could feel her voice getting higher, and now the Pokemon was looking right at her, listening to every word.

"But the thing is, you shouldn't live fearing it to happen again. You can't let one or two horrible experiences shape you up as a person. Or... a Pokemon, I guess." She placed her palm against the side of her head. "Ugh, I have no idea what I'm saying, but trust me in that I know that you have to keep going. You have to prove to everyone who left you behind that they were wrong. The fear and rage that you're feeling, make it so they fuel you, or you won't be able to move on. And you'll just end up as a shell who doesn't care about anything and ends up driving away the few people you have left."

She could feel her face hotter than it was in the better heated room, but she didn't care. She had to say those words, because they were exactly what she would've needed to hear when she was younger. The Kricketot was now immobile, not shaking anymore, gaze set on her.

"So... just come with me, and I promise you that whatever you want to do, I'll help you do it." She extended her hand to the Pokemon. "Do you want to find your old trainer?"

The Kricketot narrowed her eyes for a moment, thinking, and finally moved her head from side to side.

"Then, do you want to come with me and defeat the Gym Leaders?"

Shadi extended her hand slowly, grabbing Inyssa's finger with it. She could see a weak smile on her face as she nodded. A devious, wonderful idea appeared on her mind, and she smiled.

"Do you want... to get away from here and head to Jubilife? No one will see us in the middle of the night."

The Kricketot's eyes gleamed, clearly enamoured with the idea, and Inyssa felt that she understood how she felt. Sure, Barry and the nurse would probably be worried and angry, and that might put her in trouble with Professor Rowan, but she didn't care. She wasn't going to sleep anyway.

"Welcome to the team, Shadi. Just hop in here and we'll be ready to go," she pointed at her backpack. "Come on, let's sneak out before anyone hears us."

 

* * *

 

 

The road through route 202 was completely deserted, both Pokemon and people having better things to do than running through it at five in the morning, that statement not including Inyssa or Shadi of course.

Sure, she was falling asleep on her feet and the weight of her new Pokemon on her shoulders was more than a little bothersome and she would probably have hypothermia by the time she arrived at the next city, but sometimes you had to live a little, she thought. Looking up, she could see plainly every known constellation (even if she couldn't recognize most of them), being far away from any source of light that would have obstructed such a beatiful view. Her lips formed a weak smile, and she started walking faster, feeling great despite her physical condition.

Shadi shifted on top of her backpack and her tiny feet scratched her side, "Kurii," she raised her short stubby arm and pointed at a particular point in the sky.

"That star is Ursa major, the constellation of Ursaring," she spoke with jovial tone as her eyes were set on the beauty of the cosmos. "I'm guessing you've never seen one of those since they're native from Johto."

"Ki-kurii!" Shadi nodded in agreement, and proceeded to point at another spot in the sky.

"That's... Mars, I think," Inyssa narrowed her eyes as she studied the red, shining dot. "Godess of war and rage. It's actually a planet, not a star, but it still looks pretty."

Unfortunately the stars started disappearing and the sun showed itself across the sky by the time they reached Jubilife; both the dirt road and the grass around her were covered in dew, and the enormous metal gate leading to the city glistened with the morning light. She stopped for the first time in hours, and ignoring the pain in her feet she tried to memorize the detailed map that was pasted on to a sign along the entrance.

Jubilife TV? No, she hadn't watched television since they cancelled her favorite show, now she just watched online. Global Trade Center? She didn't have many Pokemon as it was and she wasn't going to get rid of them. Pokètch Co? She'd love to get one but she didn't have enough money, and she was not going to ask her mother for any more, that was out of the question.

Inyssa clinched her teeth, furious. So there was nothing worthy to do there? Not even a Gym? It was the biggest city in the region for god's sake!

"Who the hell designed this place!?" she angrily muttered to herself.

"Rii..." Shadi let out a sad growl and hid her face on Inyssa's coat.

She entered the town stomping her feet angrily, as if that would fix anything. There were quite a lot of people in the streets to her surprise; a bunch of business employees and blue collar workers were either going towards their jobs or getting away from a late nigh shift. Between her tired, dead eyes and her fancy overcoat that made her look way more classy than she was, she fit right in with all of them. Looking up, all she could see were endless blocks of concrete that were the buildings of the city, almost blocking the sky. The entire color of the town seemed to be dull grey, and there wasn't much brightness in the places around she could see. She walked through the busy streets, looking for the Pokemon Center, and she only found one small green park, which seemed to be mostly for decoration.

"Mental note: never come back here again," she spoke to herself, her voice drier than ever. "Sorry Shadi, guess this isn't much of a tour anymore."

The Kricketot let out another small growl, and Inyssa noticed she was having trouble keeping her eyes open. Warmth made its way from her chest outwards as she allowed herself to show the bug Pokemon a sweet smile.

She took out a Pokeball from her pocket and presented it to her, "Wanna take a nap? I promise we'll do something fun when you wake up."

Shadi stared at the artifact for what seemed like an entire minute, her eyes dull and colorless, until she decided to poke the button with one of her tiny fingers. A beam of light swallowed her body as she disappeared into the Pokeball, which wiggled three times and then stood still in Inyssa's hands. She put it in her belt next between Enma's and Steven's as she resumed her walking, this time without the extra weight or the happiness of having someone with her.

The more she strolled through the place the more she realized the map she saw at the entrance wasn't on scale; the city was enormous and she had no idea where she was. She could've asked someone in the streets for direction, but with how much everyone looked like zombies she thought that may not be the best idea.

After a couple minutes of walking she was stopped by a large man in a blue suit and black hat. He was quite tall and smiled in a way that told her he must been some sort of salesman.

"Well, well, well!" He had a grating voice that made Inyssa grit her teeth. "You are a new Pokemon trainer, aren't you? And yet you don't have a Pokétch!"

"Oh what the fresh fuck is this," she whispered to herself.

He stroked his mustache, altough in a much more grandiose way than Rowan, "You are quite the rare trainer indeed. But do not worry, I can get you one Pokétch with just..."

"Look buddy, I'm not interested in buying a second hand watch for double the original price."

"Ah, you must be confusing me for a dirty retailer! No no no, I am the president of the Pokétch Company! I'm the real deal, young trainer." He tipped his hat to her and smiled once more.

"I'm still not impressed."

"In any case!" He spoke up, ignoring her comment. "As part of a partnership with the League Association, we are now giving free Pokètchs to all new trainers! What do you think of that?"

"That it's either a terrible business strategy or our taxes are being used for much stupider things that I thought," she said, almost falling asleep on her feet.

"Yes, it is a great idea!" The man nodded. "And now I present this opportunity to you! And all you have to do to get a new exclusive Pokétch is play a minigame! Around the city there are three mischievous clowns, and all you need to do is..."

She raised her hand at the man and he stopped talking, "No. Whatever you were about to suggest, just no. You lost me at clowns. Either give the Pokétch or go bother someone else."

The huge man stopped smiling and sighed, shoulders down. He seemed much smaller when he wasn't doing the salesman act.

"Fine... You can just take the Pokétch." He grabbed a small, pink package from his pocket and gave it to her. "James from marketing was probably right, the clowns were a terrible idea.

"Clowns are always a bad idea, regardless of context," she whispered as she spun the box on her hands. "Do you have it in another color? Maybe purple or green?"

"Huh? What do you mean another color? It's pink! We made pink ones for the girl trainers and blue ones for the boys!" He smiled, as if he'd just explained something extremely obvious.

"Wow, you sure have an understanding of the current youth," she said, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Kids love being color coded by their percieved genders. It's a new fad."

He smiled smugly, and tipped his hat once more. "Well thank you. I appreciate your insight into our marketing strategy, young lady. Have a good journey!"

And with that he dissapeared, leaving Inyssa in the middle of the town completely confused and with a new tech device.

"Those were five minutes of my life I'll never get back," she said to no one. "Oh well, who cares."

After a couple of minutes of aimless wandering she decided that continuing forward was not only foolish, but also phisically impossible. With a huge sigh she let herself fall on one of the generic benches around the streets. She threw her head back, and closed her eyes due to the pain in her feet. Being a starter trainer was tough, she tought. Maybe when she had more badges she could use Steven to fly her to places, but for now she had to do all of her traveling by foot. For a moment she wished she would've attended the gym classes back when she was in school.

Her eyes started to feel heavy. She didn't want to fall asleep, but her body was betraying her. Maybe just five minutes, she thought. Then she could find the Pokemon Center and have a nice bed to rest in and wow having her eyes closed and not moving sure felt nice. Maybe she could just...

"Inyssa? Is that you?"

She got up like a spring, wildly swinging her arms to anything nearby.

"AH! NO I'M NOT ASLEEP GET AWAY FROM ME CREEP!" She screamed, half concious and eyes almost closed.

When she finally stopped she could see that the person in front of her was not a creep, but in fact a very terrified Lucas. The boy's face was pale, his body frozen due to Inyssa's odd behavior. She stood still, staring directly at him, and could feel her face getting red.

"Oh. Hey Lucas," she tried to sound casual. "I was just... resting. These benches are really comfortable," she lied, the pain on her back killing her.

The boy gave a small nod, and stammered as he spoke, "G... greetings. I'm sorry, I just saw you here and thought you might be hurt or something."

"Well, I'm not tecnically hurt," she said, hand on the back of her head. "Anyway, what are you doing here? Aren't kids supposed to be in bed at this time?"

Lucas frowned, not sure if taking that as an insult or just Inyssa being Inyssa.

"It's eleven in the morning, you must have fallen asleep for a while," he said. "And I'm seventeen and three quarters, for your information."

She opened her eyes wide, not believing what she was hearing, "Wait... you're older than me!? But you're like... a cute little Pancham. You don't look like a teenager at all!"

"C...cute?" The boy whispered, a soft pink covering his cheeks.

Inyssa froze, painfully aware of what she'd just implied, "Don't... listen to me, I'm sleepy," she shrugged it off, trying to hide her blushing. "So... do you know where the Pokemon Center is?"

"Yeah. I can take you there... if you want," he averted his eyes.

"Awesome," she said, tone dry. "Lead the way."

The boy showed her the way in his Pokètch while they walked, and in the meantime he taught her how to use her new device, including GPS, party tracker and a lot of other strange apps that she only half paid attention to Lucas' explanation of how they worked. But even with their idle chitchat Inyssa could feel that the boy was nervous because of something, and she didn't think it was because of the  _cute_  comment.

"So... ummm..." the boy spoke up, voice barely above a whisper. "Hey Inyssa, I wanted to talk to you about... I mean I wanted to say that I'm... that you're... you..."

"Just spit it out man," she interrupted him, coarse voice. "And call me Niss."

He sighed as he dropped his shoulders, "I'm sorry, Niss. Back in the trainer school, I didn't mean to..."

"I only needed those first two words," she smiled weakly at him. "It's okay, no offense taken. Let's just pretend it didn't happen and we'll both be golden, okay?"

He opened his eyes wide, fingers nervously playing with each other, "R-really? Are we... cool?"

"Sure. The way I see it, we'll probably run into each other a lot in our journeys, with you being Rowan's little elf helper," she smirked. "So let's just be on good terms, it's much less awkward that way."

"That sounds good," Lucas nodded. "Wow, that wasn't as bad as I thought. You sound much more mature than you look."

Inyssa gave the boy a pat in the back, and suddenly thought of something as her lips curved into a sly smile.

"Yeah, about that," she pretended to be thinking about something. "How did you know my age before? Are you stalking me or something?"

"What! No!" The boy's ears turned red, and he looked at her horrified. "I was just... I saw it when I was making your trainer card! I'm not a creep, I wasn't..."

"Come on man, I'm just messing with you," she let out a fruity laugh, which eased the pain a little bit. "You're easily riled up, eh?"

"Yeah, look who's talking," He frowned, adjusting his hat as he tried not to look at her. "Besides, I'm not... wait! Look out!"

Something crashed against her body and sent her towards the ground. She landed on her arm, altough luckily not with enough force to harm it. Though that didn't mean it didn't hurt like a bitch.

"Augh, come on!" She grunted, face to the ground, "I just want to sleep on a bed."

"Hey, watch where you're going!" She could hear Lucas yelling to someone, while he tried to get Inyssa to her feet.

She stood up slowly, and noticed two weirdly dressed men only feet from her. They were wearing bizarre body suits with a yellow  _G_  in the middle, and they both had strange dyed hair with the same style.  _I must definitely be dreaming now_ , Inyssa thought.

"Get out of our way, kids!" One of them yelled, turning his hand into a fist. "We have places to go."

The other elbowed his partner, "Stop yelling at them, we have to hurry! Come on, we have to get to the professor before he reaches the Trainer School!"

Both of the men ran away north, leaving the kids dumbfounded.

"Did... did they mention the professor?" Lucas frowned, still trying to help Inyssa. "Are they talking about Rowan!? He was supposed to head to the school now, are they going to attack him!?

"Oh great, now this," Inyssa whispered to herself, cursing every single deity in existence. "Let me guess, we have to go help him, don't we?"

Lucas took out a Pokeball from his pocket, "I'll go! You can stay in the Center and rest."

"And let you defend the professor? Sorry, but I'm the trainer here," she did the same, brow furrowed. "Besides, I'm really angry now. I need to take this out on someone."

And with that they followed the strangely dressed men, determined to kick some oddly dressed butts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The clowns from Pokemon Platinum were always one of the most ridiculous things I've ever seen in the franchise. So of course I had to make fun of it. Also I'm very fond of Lucas and I hope I can write more with him in the future.


	6. Thorny Cooperation.

If nothing else, running through the city in pursuit of what Inyssa thought were circus performers certainly managed to wake her up a bit. She was still convinced that at least part of what was happening wasn't real, but decided to go along with it nonetheless.

She wondered if this is what it felt like to take a dose of Gloom acid; if so she wasn't impressed. Behind her Lucas was having a hard time keeping up; his face was completely red as he tried to keep his beret in place with both hands.

"Hurry up!" She yelled. "We're about to lose them and I'm not looking through the entire city again!"

"I can't... my legs are shorter than yours!" Lucas responded through gasps. "Besides, we know they're going towards the Trainer School, they mentioned it before."

She moved her head to the side to look at the boy, "Oh, I haven't been listening for hours. Also, why are you looking at my legs?"

"Agh, stop doing that!"

Inyssa smiled to herself and moved her gaze forward. As fun as teasing Lucas was, she had to keep her eyes on the road if she didn't want to face-plant the asphalt. They took a right in one of the street intersections and ran for almost a minute, until they saw the two men standing a block away from where they were. A tall, burly man with a brown overcoat stood between them; Rowan's eyes studied the two, without any trace of fear in his expression. Behind him were the steps to Jubilife City's trainer school, the biggest Inyssa had ever seen.

"Now, now! Professor Rowan, I'm afraid you'll have to comply to our demands." The tallest one pointed a finger at the professor. "Hand over all of your research, now. Of course, it's in the name of the charitable science of Team Galactic, so it'll be for free."

The other one elbowed his partner, his chubby face red with anger, "Oh my god Janus, stop explaining our plans you dumbass! This is why Mars never sends us in missions!"

"Oh... yeah, you're right," the man named Janus bit his finger, brow furrowed. "Sorry Dione, I just wanted to sound cool."

"It's okay, you can be yourself with me," Dione gave him a pat on the back, and turned to the professor. "Give us your papers now! Or we'll have to use force," he brought a Pokeball out of his Pocket, and his partner did the same.

Inyssa and Lucas cought up to them, standing just a couple feet from the two grunts. The boy had to put his hand on his knees to catch his breath, his face flushed and covered in sweat, something Inyssa would've found funny if it weren't for the current threat in front of them. She helped him back to his feet and they both grabbed their respective Pokeballs, the boy's one being a worn out Cherish Ball.

"Professor, we're here!" Lucas shouted, both arms raised. "Don't worry, we won't let them hurt you!"

Inyssa gave him a small nod, too tired to be polite, "Hey, Rowan."

The grown man adressed the kids, his mustache twisting into a small smile. He grabbed his hat and bowed to both of them, completely ignoring the strange men.

"Ah, kids! Nice to see you again," He passed right between the two of them, to their befuddlement. "How is your Pokedex going, Inyssa? Are you enjoying your journey so far?"

"It's okay, though it could use more beds," she shrugged. "My journey I mean, not the Pokedex. That's going fine too, I already have four Pokemon."

"I see. And you only got your starter a day ago, very impressive." His eyes gleamed. "Perhaps being a trainer is second nature to you?"

Inyssa blushed; even though her brain was half asleep she could still appreciate being praised by the professor. The two grunts on the other side didn't seem too pleased by being ignored; the one who called himself Dione looked about ready to explode from rage.

"Oh professor, why must you be so difficult?" Janus spoke, voice low and rich. "I am warning you, we are not to be taken lightly."

Dione growled, pointing at him with his Pokeball, "Do what we say before things get ugly!"

Rowan's eyes narrowed, and for the first time Inyssa saw a speck of annoyance cross his face. He turned around slowly towards the grunts, his presence as intimidating as a Tyranitar.

"Quiet. Stop being such a nuisance," he ordered, shadows covering the space between his eyes. "I am attempting to socialize with my students, and your interruption is very impolite. You shouldn't raise your voice just because you are getting impatient," he told the shorter of the grunts. "And you shouldn't think yourselves strong because you are in a group. Moreover, what's with those outlandish costumes you're wearing? If you want to be intimidating, you should consider dressing with more class." The two men Rowan was speaking to seemed to shrink after the man's speech. "And you call yourselves adults? What a disgrace. Kids! Don't grow up to be like these bafoons."

Inyssa smiled from ear to ear. If only she could roast people with such skill, "Sir, you are the most amazing old man I've ever met."

"Don't you have a verbal filter!?" Lucas shook her shoulder, eyes open wide in embarassment. "It's okay sir, you can count on me to grow up to be a respectable adult like you!"

"Alright, that's enough! I'm sick and tired of being ignored!" Dione threw his Pokeball into the air, and a second later his partner did the same.

Light erupted from both as small figures began to form; the first was a grey cat with a crescent shaped head and a coiled tail, the other one a tiny green bulb with short legs. The Glameow's eyes were narrowed, and she was looking at everyone around her as if she were bored. The Budew simply smiled and danced in place, unaware of what was happening. Rowan narrowed his eyes, turning toward his students.

"Kids: take them out for me, please. I don't currently have my Pokemon with me; not that I would need them to deal with them, but I would like to see you two in action."

They nodded and stepped forward, determination burning in their eyes. It didn't matter how much of a wimp these guys were, if Rowan was watching then they were going to give it their all. Lucas sent his Turtwig to battle; the small grass Pokemon growled the moment he came out of the Pokeball, staring at his opponents defiantly. Inyssa deliberated for a second, and after thinking about it she threw Steven's Pokeball in the air; the bird Pokemon came out doing a little twirl, as if he were in the middle of a performance.

"These stolen Pokemon are weak, but they should be enough for this battle," Janus observed. "Budew, Stun Spore on the Starly!"

"Not a chance, freak! Use Double Team!" Inyssa ordered Steven, who stopped doing his twirls for a moment to follow her trainer's order; but just when he flew off and started copying himself the short grunt spoke.

"Glameow, use Fake out on him!"

The cat Pokemon disappeared in a flash, so fast that Inyssa could barely follow her movements. In the blink of an eye she appeared in front of Steven; and before the bird could react she slapped him on the face, stunning him. The small distraction, while not doing much damage was enough for the Budew's spores to reach him. The Starly started coughing, and his flight became slower and lanky.

"Son of a...!" She exclamed, gritting her teeth. She turned around to her partner, elbowing him to action. "What are you waiting for!? Attack one of them!"

Lucas gulped, his legs trembling. Slowly he raised one of his fingers and pointed it at the Budew, "R-right! Archimedes, use Tackle on him!"

The turtle Pokemon ran as fast as he could towards the Budew, and with a big thumping sound he send him flying a few feet with his attack.

"What are you doing?" She questioned him. "Attack the cat! Budew already did all he's going to do this battle, there's no point in focusing him right now!"

Lucas lowered his head to the girl, avoiding her eyes. "I'm sorry! I'm just not used to this..."

"Then maybe you should spend some more time with Pokemon instead of just reading about them." She stomped the ground, forcing the boy to take a step back. "Ugh, whatever. Steven, Wing Attack on the Glameow!"

"Knock him out of the sky with Scratch, darling," Janus ordered calmly.

Starly flew high up and dropped from the sky towards the Glameow, compensating for his lack of speed with the momentum of his fall. Inyssa smiled, the small bugger was pretty smart. His wings started glowing white, and his eyes were set on his opponent, ready to strike. The cat Pokemon crouched, preparing herself to jump at the right moment.

Steven was only inches away from the Glameow when the paralysis took hold and he felt his wings not responding. His opponent gave him a sly smile and jumped like lighting towards him, claws out. With a resounding hit she sent the bird Pokemon flying towards the floor, where he collapsed. The Starly was still concious, but he was badly hurt and struggling to get up.

"Good job, small one," Janus smiled brightly. "Now finish him off! Then we can take care of the boy."

"You too Budew, use Absorb on him!"

Both Pokemon launched their attacks at the same time, racing towards Steven with the intent to kill. Inyssa's heart skipped a beat, and she started looking desperately through her bag for Steven's Pokeball. She hadn't expected to need it, she thought the battle would be a piece of cake...

"Archimedes, Protect him!"

The Turtwig threw himself in front of Steven, taking both hits directly. He managed to stand his ground, being able to resist attacks much better than the Starly. He stomped his feet and growled aggressively towards his opponents, eyes full of fire.

"I'm not dead weight, and you shouldn't leave me out of this," Lucas asserted himself, blushing. "A-and you should stop being such a jerk sometimes! Archimedes, Razor Leaf!"

Archimedes' back started glowing, and from it emerged a torrent of glowing sharp leaves; the projectiles went flying towards Budew and Glamew too fast for them to dodge; both Pokemon endured the attack barely, covered in scracthes and cuts.

"I... you..." Inyssa didn't know what to say, she hadn't expected Lucas to stand up to her. "Like I care what you think of me... Steven, Wing attack again!"

Starly finally got on his feet, covered in dirt and with a notable cut across his chest. He flapped his wings and flew up, determined not to let that Glameow humilliate him again. With the wind behind him he once again dropped directly towards the cat Pokemon, pain covering his entire body. His wings glowed once more, this time so brightly that they were blinding.

The attack shook the ground, sending dust everywhere from the impact point. When it cleared Inyssa could see Steven barely able to stand, one foot on top of a now unconscious Glameow. There was a gleam of pride in the bird's eyes.

Janus's smile dissapeared, and he returned the Glameow back to her Pokeball, "Well, that was disappointing."

"Fuck! That was terrible!" Dione took a look at his grass Pokemon, and threw his Pokeball to the ground. "Screw this, there's no way to win now, these Pokémon are useless! Janus, we're getting out of here now."

"Oh man, Mars is going to be so disappointed."

Inyssa cringed at the sight of that jerk abandoning his Pokemon like that. A part of her knew that it was stolen, but she didn't care in the slightest.

"Hey, come back here! I'm not done with you two incompetent cosplayer losers!" She took out Enma's Pokeball, ready to continue the fight. "You're not escaping on my watch, not after leaving that Budew behind!"

She took a step forward, despite the professor and Lucas' complaints that she should calm down. She was about to let Enma out when something came out of the bushes near them, and flew towards the grunts fast as lightning.

"Here I come you jerks prepare to- Oh shoot!" Inyssa's blonde friend tripped a few feet from them, going straight towards the floor between Inyssa and the two grunts. "Ugh... that didn't work like I planned."

Inyssa and Lucas froze in shock, and Rowan simply raised an eyebrow at the boy's flashy entrance. The girl kneeled in front of him and helped him get up, still not understanding what had happened. When she looked towards where the two men where now there was only a single Pokemon; the Budew was still happily dancing, not aware that his owners had fled.

"Hello again Barry," Inyssa whispered in his ear, voice full of poison. "So, do you want me to kill you now or later?"

He gave her a sour look and shook his arm away from her grasp.

"Kill me? That's weird, I would've thought you would just leave me behind and run away in the middle of the night. Oh wait, you already did that," Barry put his face so close to hers that she could count his freckles. "Wanna explain that, Niss? I had to run double time to catch up with you here! I barely had time to find those clowns to get my new Pokétch!"

Inyssa opened her mouth to respond, but nothing came out. A wave of shame washed over her as she lowered her head and tried to avoid her friend's eyes.

She didn't have an excuse. Not for him.

She raised both her hands dismissively, "Alright, let's say we're even."

"Oh no, you're not getting out of this one that easily," Barry bopped her in the nose so suddenly that she was stunned. "You owe me all your money now. You can pay me once you're the Champion."

"Ehem..."

Both kids looked up to Rowan, who was watching them intently, the shadow of a smile across his face.

"Nice to see you join us Barry, though next time please choose a more formal method of introducing yourself," He tipped his hat to the boy. "As for Lucas and Inyssa, that was an excellent battle. You could still improve your teamwork, though."

Both kids looked at each other, and Inyssa frowned and stuck her tongue out at him.

"Oh yeah, what was that about?" Barry asked, looking in the direction the two grunts escaped towards. "Who were those guys?"

"They introduced themselves as Team Galactic," Rowan mentioned, curling his mustache. "I don't recognize the name, but they were interested in my research papers, so they must be working on something related to that."

Lucas frowned, making a face that was unquestionably adorable, "You mean your research regarding Pokemon evolution? They could be trying to learn what you discovered about that energy that Pokemon release when they evolve..."

"And you lost me again," Inyssa whispered, all the excitement from the previous battle gone.

"It could be," Rowan nodded. "But we should not worry about that right now. You two should continue on your journey, and Lucas must accompany me towards my lab again. I have some thinking to do."

"Yes sir, about that..." Lucas scratched his ear, embarrassed. "Can I talk to you about something later?"

"Of course Lucas, whatever you want," Rowan looked at Barry and Inyssa, and tipped his hat to them. "Goodbye children, I hope we meet again under better circumstances."

The youngsters both bowed to the man as he walked away with Lucas. After a couple seconds Inyssa turned away and put Steven back in his Pokeball, she then approached the happy dancing Budew, and grabbed the other Pokeball in the ground next to him.

"Well, I guess I have to take care of you little buddy," she said, and the Budew jumped towards her, smiling. "Great, another misfit for my team. Welcome aboard, Bret."

And with that she put him back in the ball, leaving only Barry left with her. She stood there for a while, not wanting to turn around and look at him.

"So hey, how's your team doin..." She started speaking but was quickly interrupted.

"Don't do that again," His voice was devoid of any humor, and his expression was unreadable. "I was worried. I thought something happened to the Kricketot and you."

Inyssa's lip trembled, and she felt that she had a block of ice in her chest. She sighed, and put a hand behind her head, adjusting her hat.

"I... felt that I had to get out of there," her voice came out wavy and weak, barely above a whisper, "and Shadi too, she wanted to travel with me. You would've just objected to it. I just... sometimes I have to go away, you know that."

Barry smiled weakly, but she could see the hurt in his eyes, clear as crystal.

He streched his arms to appear calm and smiled widely, "That's okay, we all need some alone time now and then. Just, next time leave a note or something, jeez."

Inyssa walked towards him, and smiled as brightly as she could. She wanted to say sorry, she wanted to hug him and tell him she did trust him, she wanted to tell him so many more things than it would be smart to. She knew what happened when you didn't appreciate the people around you, and yet...

She gave him a pat in the back, not looking him in the eyes.

"Wanna come with me to the Pokemon Center?" She asked, voice almost estinto. "We can grab something to eat, and maybe I can get some rest for once."

"Yeah, sounds good," Barry responded, and from so close she realized that his voice felt deeper than before, "I'm starving, and it's your turn to pay."


	7. Smoke and Ash

**Route 206 - 1 PM:**

She never thought she'd find herself driving a stolen bike while being pursued by a criminal organization she used to be a part of. Fate was funny that way.

What wasn't funny was the three foot flying creature which dived at her at that moment, its poisoned claws barely missing her back as she made a sudden turn right. The wheels screeched and growled as the brakes tried to stop them from crashing against the handrail of the bridge, which would've sent her plummeting to her untimely, ironic death.

Choking on a curse, she stepped hard on the pedal and accelerated, the hills at both sides of the bridge becoming a blur of green and brown. One more minute, that's all she needed. If she could only get to the other side of it...

_"The Crobat is approaching from the left. We will not be able to dodge this time."_

Or maybe she'd just die right there. That certainly would solve all her problems in a very drastic manner.

"I'm on it," she whispered to herself. "Lend me some power."

Her right hand, horribly callused and numb, grabbed onto the grip as strongly as she could while she rotated her waist, looking up at the purple bat. His four wings moved so fast they were almost invisible, and his fangs were bare, eyes set on her. The horrible creature did a barrel roll and once again dived in her direction.

It was fast, really fucking fast. She held her breath and her entire body clenched in anticipation. Just a little more, he had to be at the right distance...

Once she could see the hostile gleam in his eyes she raised her left hand towards him, and her entire body glew gold. A stream of psychic energy was expelled from her hand, clashing against the Crobat like a hammer. His wings froze as he was expelled backwards, disappearing in the distance.

She allowed herself a proud smile. That Crobat was the fastest of Saturn's Pokemon, if he couldn't keep up with them...

_"Right ahead! Look out!"_

She was too late by the time she managed to turn around. Her eyes set on a bell shaped creature that stood not too far from them, floating in the middle of the air. Its metalic body shone with a white glow as the round hole in it's stomach gathered light. 

Of course, Teleport.

"Son of a..."

The screech of metal against metal rang in her ears as it shot a torrent of light towards them. She felt her body being lifted from the bike as the attack swallowed it whole.

Her eyes focused on the sky above, and then in the floor as she fell into it. The impact made her ears buzz and she felt something warm running through her nose to her upper lip. Something red, as she discovered once she opened her eyes.

_"That was close."_

She wanted to reply something not very polite to the voice, but instead she willed her limbs to move. They eventually did, after she told them that acting as if they were made of jelly would not be acceptable right now. Death was not acceptable. Not until she finished her mission.

She noticed the charred remains of the bike a few feet ahead, through the blur that was her vision. Slowly she got up, one leg at a time, and tried her best to focus on the enemy in front of her. The metallic creature was still floating there, and it still looked like a giant blue bell with two arms and red dots at the bottom which might've been its eyes. So she hadn't imagined that after all.

"You did a good job getting so far."

The voice caught her off guard, mostly for the familiarity of it. A short man stood next to the strange Pokemon, hands behind his back. He wore a modified version of the Team Galactic uniform, with a long grey tunic and black pants that reached to his ankles. His dark blue hair was combed backwards in a crescent shape, and his droopy eyes were focused entirely on hers.

"But I think it's time you give up this pointless insurgence. Give me back what you stole, Ursa."

She recoiled at the sound of her old name, it's two syllabes burning the inside of her chest. Of course they had to send Saturn himself to hunt her down, she should've known so ever since she ran away from the base. Still, she'd hoped they wouldn't have a need for the second in command until they deemed the situation to be that of life or death.

Then again, the boss had always been a savvy guy. He must've known that every second she was away meant another chance for her to interfere.

_"Keep him occupied. I can gather enough energy to teleport us out of here but you need to gain some time."_

She laughed. A dry, bitter laugh that ended up serving as one of defiance without her realizing. Saturn raised an eyebrow.

Well, it's not like she had anything better to do. Preferable to die while telling your enemies to fuck off than doing nothing.

"You really think you can hold me here by yourself?" she shook her head, "I took out every single grunt you sent to find me. With this thing at my side there's nothing you can do to me."

She saw Saturn's shoulders raise slightly, and his eyes narrowed. She smiled; no matter how much he tried to emulate the boss there was no doubt that her words were getting under his skin.

He raised his chin even higher, a look of disdain on his face, "Without its body the power you can extract from it is very limited, and you know that."

"I'm good at rationing," she smiled coyly. "Wanna flip that coin? Trust me, I have enough juice left to blow up this entire bridge with you in it"

An outrageous lie; not even in peak form could she accomplish such a feat. Still, Saturn didn't seem to know that and she saw the way his foot moved backwards slightly, as if he wanted to take a step back. The floating behemoth behind him let out a metallic growl.

"Why are you doing this, Ursa?" he whispered only loud enough for her to listen. There was a plea in that voice, a sadness that she wasn't able to ignore. "Why turn away from what we've given you? We were your family. I cared for you as if you were my sister."

She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Something was forming a knot in her throat, and that very same something was grabbing at her heart and squishing without holding back.

_"Come on, just a bit more time. Keep this up."_

The voice, as annoying as it was, gave her enough strength to respond. With wetness forming in her eyes she opened her mouth to speak.

"What can I say? I'm in my rebellious phase," she did her best to smile again. "You're not gonna get me back, Saturn. I've seen what you people are planning and I'd die before I let it happen."

The man took a step forward, stomping the ground as his hands appeared from behind his back, turning into fists. "What we are planning is for the good of all! A new world, one free of everything that holds us back! How could..." his voice shook, as well as his lower lip. "Ursa, how could you betray something as beautiful as that? How could you choose to side with them? I thought you understood..."

"I'll end Team Galactic with my own hands," she growled back. "And my name isn't Ursa, it's Metchi!"

She defiantly took a step forward, the voice ringing inside her head.

_"What are you doing? That's the opposite of distracting him!"_

"If... if that's the road you choose..."

Saturn inhaled deeply, and when he opened his eyes again they had changed into a cold, deep intensity that froze her where she stood. He raised his thin right arm and pointed his index finger at her.

"Blowing up the bridge, was it? I belive that will be a fitting end for you."

Metchi realized at that point just how much she'd fucked up. The bell Pokemon extended its arms outwards and pointed its stomach once again towards her, gathering light until she was almost blinded by it.

"Bronzong, Flash Cannon! Let this sacrifice be in the name of Team Galactic!"

It fired the attack before she had time to react, and all she saw was white as the light started to envelop her body.

_"NOW!"_

With the voice came that golden glow again. Her body shifted and dissipated into thin air just moments before it could be incinerated by Bronzong's attack.

Her entire being evaporated, and everything turned black.

 

* * *

 

 

**Route 203 - 9 AM:**

On one hand, Inyssa thought Pokemon Centers were great for starting trainers. One could use them as a free hotel, the food was cheap and the staff was sickeningly sweet to everyone. On the other hand, free pancake Sundays meant that Barry had to be dragged away when it was finally time to leave the city. The nurse had felt so bad for the boy that she let him take a plate full of pancakes for his travels, along with a fork and honey.

"I've never been more embarrassed in my life," Inyssa spoke under her breath, after about an hour of not talking to her friend.

"Look Niss, the point of a Pokemon journey is to try new things and explore the world," Barry explained himself, walking through the grassy route while still holding the plate, "and the world presented me free pancakes; what did you expect me to do?"

She sighed deeply, earning herself a small pat from the Kricketot walking at her side, "Try to act like a respectable human being for once?"

"Life's an adventure Niss, and I'm gonna throw myself right at it, face first," he clenched his fist in front of him, eyes closed.

They were almost at the entrance of the Oreburgh Gate when something emerged from the grass in front of them. A small, rodent-like Pokemon was staring directly at them, yellow eyes sparking. The Shinx seemed to want a fight.

"Oh hey, look at this little guy," Barry spoke with food in his mouth. "You think he wants pancakes?"

Inyssa noticed something touching her leg; behind her Shadi was hiding from the Shinx, eyes closed and arms strongly grabbing her trainer.

She got on her knees to be on her level, and put one hand over her head. "You okay there? You don't have to fight if you don't want to."

It took Shadi a long time to respond. Her small hands were shaking, but little by little she walked forward until she was standing in front of Inyssa and facing the Shinx.

"You're really brave. I'm glad you're my Pokemon," Inyssa complimented the Kricketot, knowing very well she needed all the encouragement possible. "Hey Barry, you don't mind if I get this one?"

"I can't eat and fight at the same time," he shrugged.

The Shinx did not seem amused by their idle chat; as soon as Inyssa had looked away he began running toward Shadi, eyes flashing maliciously. She didn't have much time to react, but luckily Inyssa had a plan.

"Shadi, use Bide!"

The Kricketot took a deep breath and planted her feet firmly on the ground, preparing herself for the impact. The tackle coming from the Shinx hit her dead in the stomach, only slightly budging her.

"Wow, that thing is tough," Barry commented between bites.

"Darn straight she is, you should be worried," she smiled, a spark of pride flowing through her. "Use Bide one more time! Come on, you can do it!"

The Shinx took a couple of steps back, realizing that his attacks weren't doing enough damage. He stood still for a second, thinking. His body started glowing yellow and the air around him sparkled with power. Once again he ran towards the Kricketot, this time covered in a mantle of electricity.

"Oh shit, he knows Spark," Inyssa whispered."I mean, you can do this Shadi! Just stand your ground!"

The clash was enough to lift the bug Pokemon off her feet, sending her to the ground. She was still for a moment, but after a few seconds she pushed herself to her feet. Her body was now glowing red, energy coming from every pore of her body.

"That's the spirit! Now hit him with all you've got!"

Shadi focused all her energy into her head, and with a single jump she tackled the Shinx with enormous strenght, almost burying him into the ground. When the dust settled Inyssa saw the small Pokemon laying completely unconscious, ready for catching.

"That was brutal," Barry said with worry pasted on his face. "Jeez, I definitely don't want to go against her."

Inyssa was about to speak when she noticed a glow behind her. Shadi was now covered in light so strong it was almost impossible not to look away; her body started changing, her torso getting slim and her arms extending greatly and becoming sharper until they were long enough to be scythes. Once the light subsided Inyssa could see her Pokemon's new form, along with her giant new mustache.

Inyssa patted her head, now being able to do that without being on her knees. "I had no idea you were so close to evolving, you look amazing!"

"She has scythes and a mustache?" Barry's expression was full of indignity. "Why do you get the best Pokemon!?"

"Because I'm the best trainer dummy," Inyssa replied while giving a hug to her Pokemon. "And I'm about to get another one too."

She walked towards the unconcious Shinx, and got a Pokeball from her backpack.

"Your name will be Kuro," she told him even though he couldn't hear her, "hope you like being with the best."

She threw the ball at the Pokemon, and after three wiggles it locked up, sealing the deal. She grabbed it from the ground and added it to her belt.

"Well I'd say that was a lovely turn of events," she said, enjoying Barry's worried expression. "Now let's go to Oreburgh, I feel ready to challenge the gym."

 

* * *

 

An hour later they exited the cave that connected the previous route with Oreburgh city. Inyssa had her hands on her eyes and was breathing heavily, while Barry guided her with his arms.

"I hate caves I hate caves I hate caves." Inyssa kept repeating under her breath, her body trembling, "Is it over now?"

"Yeah, we're past the cave," Barry gave her a pat in the head. "You could've mentioned before that you had claustrophobia you know."

"Well I didn't knew it until now," she finally opened her eyes, and felt that she could breathe now that she was in the open. "I just hope there aren't many more of these in Sinnoh."

In front of them lay a giant stone gate, welcoming them to Oreburgh. As usual there was a small sign with a map that described all the important locations on the city.

"Let's see, we have a mining museum, we have the mines and we have... uh... some buildings, I guess," Barry exclaimed as he read the map.

"I don't want anything to do with mining ever again," Inyssa pushed him aside and studied the sign herself. "Oh come on, there's nothing worthwile here either!?"

"Hey, the museum might be..." Barry started talking, but he stopped himself with a sigh, "ah, who am I kidding, this place is boring."

Inyssa tried to ignore the heat coming to her face; she didn't want to admit it but she really expected someplace to have a nice lunch with Barry in the city, "Let's just go to the gym. I'll fight my frustrations away."

The trip through the city was quite depressing; Inyssa thought Jubilife was dull but at least it had some class to it. Oreburgh didn't even look like a place people might be interested to live in; it seemed like a city for workers, which was clear by the amount of miners running around everywhere. All the buildings were small and old, as if they'd been constructed a hundred years ago and they hadn't bothered making any more since.

They found the Gym before they expected it, only about fifteen minutes after they entered through the main road. It was a small, black building made of black rock, quite a lot smaller than the ones Inyssa'd seen on TV.

"I feel like I've been lied to. This isn't nearly as cool as it should be."

"I mean... yeah it looks bad but it's only the first gym," Barry argued, hands behind his head. "We have to climb our way up to earn all the fancy stuff."

They walked up the steps until they reached the entrance; it was a simple metallic door without any windows to look inside. In front of the door there was a single person, a woman looking at her own hands, clearly bored.

"Sorry kids, but the leader isn't here right now," she spoke without even looking at them.

"W-what?" Inyssa couldn't believe what she was hearing. "But it's the middle of the day, it's supposed to be open until midnight!"

"Well tough bits, the man's not here," the woman shrugged. "What do you want me to do? He went to the mines to spend some time alone. If you want you can go and tell him to move his butt to work, then I can let you in."

Both kids angrily walked away from the gym, being denied the only thing they could possibly do in that city. Inyssa's ears were red and she seemed like she was about to explode.

"That's such bullshit! How can he not be here, the gym is his responsibility!" She yelled to no one. "He can't just go do whatever the hell he wants, it's his job!"

"I guess we'll have to go look for him," Barry sighed, looking down.

"And in the mines on top of it," she scratched her head through her cotton hat. "When I find him and I get his badge I'll shove it right up his..."

"Now now, that's not the language I expect from someone like you, Inyssa."

They spun around rapidly, not noticing that there was someone behind them. A middle aged woman was staring at the kids, with short black hair and blue electric eyes, a huge smile pasted on her face. Next to her was the man who'd just spoken. He was almost six feet tall, blonde and with spiky hair and a huge green overcoat. His eyes were full of the same energy as Barry's.

"Mom! Dad!" Barry yelled, jumping in place.

"Sarah? Palmer?" Inyssa narrowed her eyes. "What are you two doing here?"

"Well, we heard you two were about to reach Oreburgh and..." Sarah began to speak, but the man interrupted her.

"We came to spectate your first Gym battle of course!" His voice was even more booming than Barry's, and his pose was full of confidence. "It's a very important moment for a young trainer, and we wouldn't want to miss it."

"Oh my gosh that's amazing!" Barry's eyes became starry, and his smile was huge. "Thanks! I'll make sure to win my first battle for sure!"

"Well, I had to look for your father for hours, he's a hard fella to find," Sarah admitted, giving the stink eye to his husband. "But it's going to be worth it to watch you two battle here."

Inyssa smiled at her, although she didn't really feel like it. So Barry's parents had come to see him, she wondered if...

"Hey, Sarah..." She spoke barely above a whisper, embarrassed. "How's... have you talked to my mom recently?"

Both Palmer and Barry heard that and tried to look away in the least subtle way possible, which actually made her want to laugh, they were so alike. Sarah locked eyes with her, a compassionate smile on her face.

"She's been getting better," she put a hand on Inyssa's shoulder, "but she couldn't come with us, she said she was busy with her job."

"Yeah... I figured."

"Come on kid, let me see a smile!" Palmer clenched his fist strongly. "We came here to see you too, so you better not disappoint me! As an aspiring trainer I have to keep an eye on you if you ever wish to visit my Battle Facility."

Inyssa smiled, happy that she had a chance to change the subject.

"You better watch out Palmer, Barry and I are going to dethrone you pretty soon," she put her hand around her friend. "It's just a matter of time. Unfortunately the Gym Leader doesn't seem to want to work today; the receptionist told us he's down in the mines."

Palmer put a finger on his mouth, as if he was thinking of something.

"Ah yes, that would be Roark right? It doesn't surprise me that he's not at his post most of the time," He whispered contemplatively.

"What do you mean? What's wrong with him?" Barry asked.

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing, just family issues." He waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry, I'll go talk to him and remind him of his status as a Gym leader."

"OH! OH! Can I come with you, dad!?" Barry grabbed his father's arm, shaking it strongly. "It could be like an adventure, just you and me!"

"Ah, but of course! It's been a while since we had some bonding time." He put his hand on Barry's shoulder with enough force to make him flinch. "I'll teach you a couple things that'll help you against your rival, I have a suspicion you'll need it," he winked at Inyssa. "You want to join us, battle girl?"

Inyssa smiled, and refused politely. She didn't want to interrupt Barry's time with his father; he didn't see him enough as it was. Besides, she wanted to spend some time with Sarah and ask her a few things.

"Alright then, to the mines!" Palmer pointed south, yelling at the top of his lungs. "Are you ready son? This is going to be intense!"

"I'm ready!" Barry looked like he had flames coming out of his eyes. "For glory!"

"For glory!"

They yelled together as they began to run toward the mines, looking like a couple of Tauros in the middle of a stampede.

"They're going to cause so much trouble," Sarah sighed.

Inyssa wanted to tell her that they could take care of each other, but knowing the two guys as well as she did she couldn't just lie to her like that.

"Yeah, they wil," she admitted. "But at least they'll have fun. Come on, let's get some coffee while they run around."


	8. Fire and Mustaches

Inyssa had trouble believing it, but there was actually a small café close to the Gym where they could sit down for a bit and have a talk. She was pretty sure it was the only non-mining related business around, only open because it was close to the Gym. Sarah cordially invited her for a cup of tea and to give her what she described as a small gift for her first official battle.

She leaned back into her chair, which felt stiff and wet, "And to think I'm going to do my debut in a dump like this..." she sighed with an overpriced cup of coffe on her hands. "What a joke."

Sarah raised her cup and took a sip of her Earl Grovyle tea, which smelled like burned mint. She was sitting with her back completely straight, enjoying the wind on her face.

"You shouldn't be so judgmental, Inyssa," she advised, taking a deep breath. "This city is full of hard working and passionate people."

"Don't get me wrong, I'm sure everyone here is nice," she shrugged, taking a tentative sip. "But why would the League committee turn this place into a Gym city? Aren't they supposed to be touristic places for trainers to enjoy? Isn't that how the Association makes their money?"

"Well, this place does make them money. All kinds of fossils, evolution stones and precious gems are harvested in the mines every day."

She snorted, shaking her head lightly, "So they just wanted a piece of that cash for themselves. Figures, bunch of greedy farts. No offense."

"Oh, none taken, don't worry about that," Sarah's lips curled into a playful smile, "I'm just an employee, I have no say over these kind of things."

Inyssa was about to speak when she noticed dark figures coming towards them. The dust clouds raising over the city obscured them until they were almost at the doors of the Gym. Palmer and Barry were standing around with giant smiles on their faces, and next to them there was someone a bit shorter than them; a young man with a mining hat and bright red hair.

They left the money on the table and walked toward them. When they approached Barry immediately turned to Inyssa and placed both hands on her shoulders, shaking her so strongly that she feared he might liquify her brain.

"Niss Niss Niss! You won't believe what happened we found this guy and he said he didn't want to but I said I wanted to and then he told me he would but I told him you were here too and...!"

Barry's words came out of his mouth like water from a hose, so quickly and garbled that he was out of breath by the moment he finished his first sentence. Palmer stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder and making a sign to let him speak.

"What my incredibly talented son is trying to say is that he just beat the Gym leader." The older man gave Barry a look so full of pride Inyssa felt somewhat inadequate, "Roark wanted to make it quick and have the battle in the mines. I tried to tell him that there was another contender in the city but Barry already had a Pokeball in his hands so..."

Inyssa shot her friend a scowl full of anger, "What!? You doof, I wanted to see you battle!" She bopped him in the forehead strongly enough to push him away.

"Ouch! I'm sorry Niss, it's just... I couldn't help myself." He formed his best Poochyena face in an attempt to calm her anger, but to no avail. "Besides, we convinced him to come here anyway, so you'll have your battle too!"

Both kids heard Roark clear his throat behind them, and when they turned they found him looking at them with a shadowed expression, no sign of a smile on his face.  
His arms were crossed and he tapped the floor with one foot impatiently.

"Yes, my associate Palmer persuaded me to come back here. I'm guessing you're the other challenger?" He studied Inyssa with a disinterested look. "First that hyperactive mess of a kid and now you. Great." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Let's go inside, we'll finish this quickly and I'll go back to my work."

"Your work  _is_  the gym," Inyssa spouted back, not believing what she was hearing. "If you want to spend all your time messing around with rocks then maybe you should leave the job to someone else."

Roark's ears turned as red as his hair, and Inyssa noted that Barry and Palmer were looking at the girl nervously, while Sarah shot her a look to warn her to watch her words.

"What do you know about my work?" His voice flared up, and Inyssa felt a shiver down her spine at the sound of it. "Ugh, I don't have time to be listening to an entitled brat and her Frontier Brain father. Let's just get this over with."

"PALMER IS NOT MY F..." She started to yell back at him but he just entered the gym and closed the door on her face, leaving her seething. "Agh! What the hell is wrong with that guy!?"

Palmer fixed his collar and tried to avoid the girl's gaze, "It's... a long story. I apologize in his behalf, but please try not to provoke him." He gave her a thumbs up. "Just head in there and show us what you've got, okay? We'll be watching from the stands."

 

* * *

 

 

An electric buzz sounded around the arena as the lights came to life, momentarily blinding Inyssa. The inside of the Gym was quite small, the only thing around being the battlefield and a couple stands at the sides. At her right she could see Barry and his parents from afar, both men frantically waving their hands at her. At the other extreme of the field stood Roark, arms crossed and posture firm as steel. Alongside him there was a small table with different small boxes, each containing between three and six Pokeballs.

"I'm guessing this is your first Gym battle, just like with that brat." His booming voice reached her, as he grabbed a Pokeball from the first, smallest box. "Good, we can get this over quick. We will each use three Pokemon, the first one to run out loses."

"I know how battles work," Inyssa spat back, mentally debating which Pokemon she should use. "I won't need more than this."

They both opened their Pokeballs without much fanfare. Both opened and let out blinding lights that filled the entire arena; the Gym leader's Pokemon materialized into a small boulder with two muscular arms, and Inyssa's Budew appeared in response, happily shifting his body back and forth in a strange dance, a sly smile on his face.

"A grass Pokemon, what stunning originality," Roark whispered under his breath. "Sorry Geodude, I'll make it up to you with food later. Rock Throw!"

"Don't let him zone you out, get close and use Mega Drain!" Inyssa shouted, closed fist forward.

The Geodude's arms burrowed into the floor, and with a much higher speed than she thought possible he grabbed head-sized pieces of rock and threw them at Bret with the hope of squishing him. The small sprout jumped to dodge the first boulder, which went past him and crashed a few feet ahead of Inyssa. Two others immediately followed; and the Budew dived left for the first one and jumped on top of the second one, using the momentum to plunge himself into his opponent.

Roark's eyes opened slightly, surprise clear across his face, "Geodude, Tackle him before he reaches you!"

The Geodude used her arms to launch herself towards the Budew, who simply smiled and used the closed petals on his head to do a little flop and position himself perfectly above his opponent. With a green flash of light he absorbed the Geodude's energy, leaving her to smash into the ground, unconscious.

"Shit, that was fast," Roark cringed, and with a movement of his hand returned the Geodude to her Pokeball. He grabbed another one randomly from the box.

"Great job Bert, keep it up!" Inyssa felt heat rushing through her body as she yelled. "So Roark, when does the actual Gym battle start? This warm-up is fun but I think I'm ready now." She formed her best crap eating grin and crossed her arms at the Gym leader, taking satisfaction in his frustrated expression.

"You shouldn't be so cocky after winning a battle with type advantage." He clenched the Pokeball in his hand and threw it in the air. "A trainer's first Gym battle is always easy; the Association doesn't want kids to get discouraged too early."

The light which emerged from the Pokeball expanded immensely, coiling around itself to form what appeared to be a giant snake made of rocks. The Onix opened his enormous maw and roared at Bret, who didn't even notice his presence.

"He might look scary, but Onix's defenses are very weak so we still have the advantage," she advised her Pokemon who wasn't planning on worrying about anything in the near future. "Mega Drain again!"

"Use Rock Throw, don't let him come near you!"

The Onix slithered forward, his weight enough to make the ground beneath his tail crumble, and with a sudden movement he used it to throw an avalanche of boulders towards Bret. The small bud Pokemon moved as fast as his small dangly legs would allow, running left and right towards the Onix while trying to avoid the hail of rock falling around him. He was almost at the tip of his opponent's tail when one of the smaller stones hit him from the left, throwing him into the ground where he bounced.

"Shake it off!"

Without too much difficulty the Budew got in his feet again, his body flexible enough that a small rock wouldn't be able to harm him much. Jumping forward he started running along the Onix's body, trying to reach his head.

Roark grit his teeth, a drop of sweat falling down his forehead, "Thumper, at least try to hit him, use Tackle!"

Onix's head moved slowly towards Bret, trying to hit him away but the small grass Pokemon was too flexible for such a behemoth. Once again he was able to get around the attack with his small extremities, and once on top of the giant rock Pokemon's head he planted his bulb on his skin. Another even bigger green light flooded the room as the Onix screeched in pain, strongly enough that Inyssa had to cover her ears with her hands. Once the deed was done the mighty Pokemon laid on the floor of the arena, unable to move.

"Wh-what...?" Roark stood still as he tried to process the image in front of him. "How the hell..."

"Woohoo! That's what I'm talking about!" Inyssa jumped high in the air, fist raised towards the ceiling. "Bret you're the best grass Pokemon ever! Those Galactic idiots don't know what they missed by dumping you!"

The Gym Leader shot her a venomous look as he returned his Onix to his Pokeball. He spent a few seconds deliberating before speaking again.

"Well, since this went from bad to worse..." he let his shoulders drop. "Look kid, I have another Geodude in this box and you still have all your Pokemon left. I wouldn't be above ending this without harming anymore of my friends."

Inyssa's smile froze for a second, slowly shifting into a look of confusion. She didn't hear right, did she? Was he proposing...

"I give up," Roark threw his hands in the air. "You can have your badge if you want."

Inyssa's body flared up, and she felt her hands curling into fists.

"What!?" The scream came out without her realizing, her voice echoing through the building. "Are you serious!? You're a Gym leader and you haven't acted like it in this entire battle, and now you're just going to give up!?" She started walking towards him, feet stomping the ground. "Fuck that! I came here to prove myself, not to be given the badge like it's a cheap gift!"

Roark pointed at her, brown eyes flaring, "Prove yourself? Oh spare me your excuses, the only reason you're taking on the Gyms is to appease your ego. That's all you damn trainers ever do, you just want to waste your parents' money on a Pokemon journey to get recognition because you don't have anything actually important to do! You think having an easy battle is bad? Try having your entire city turned into a tourist trap for spoiled brats just because the Association wants all the money our mines produce!"

Inyssa wanted to grab him by the collar and slap him around; what the hell did he know about her? He had no idea what she'd been through, to have the nerve to accuse her of something like that...

"Roark, behave yourself!" Palmer walked from the stands towards both of them, arms crossed and stern gaze set on the young man. "You're a Gym leader, you must act like it no matter what trainer you're facing against."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Inyssa turned to the blond man, voice spitting poison.

"And you Inyssa, I told you not to provoke him," Palmer stared her down. "You need to control your temper or it will get the better of you before you know it."

Both battlers stared daggers at the tall man, unable to find any appropriate response to his words. Roark's hands were still curled into fists, but he gave a long sigh and moved his eyes towards his opponent.

"Fine, do you want a real challenge?" he asked.

"It'd be a nice change of pace," she replied, not looking at him.

"Great. Go back to your spot and let's continue."

Both contenders returned to their respective rings, while Palmer sighed in relief as he walked towards the stands. Roark deposited the Pokeball that contained his second Geodude into the box where it belonged, and grabbed another one from the box next to it. He turned to face Inyssa and with a simple movement he freed his Pokemon into the field; the light from it formed into a bipedal creature, half of his trainer's height and with a spiky-blue head. She had to squint for a couple seconds to recognize it; it was Rampardos' pre-evolution: Cranidos.

"I'll end this with a single move," Roark smiled for the first time in the battle. The Cranidos lowered his head, eyes set on Bert. "I hope you like what you reap; Gundyr, use Headbutt!"

The Cranidos moved so fast she barely had time to react; he started running like a bullet towards her Pokemon, head pointed directly at his round chest.

"S-shit!" Inyssa yelped. "Use Stun Spore, now!"

Bert opened his bulb-like head and released a yellow dust which surrounded him and his vicinity, but the Cranidos simply dispelled it with the speed of his advance. Before the Budew had time to dodge he felt something dive into his stomach, sending him like lightning towards the Gym's wall right behind Inyssa. She watched horrified as her Pokemon crashed onto the floor with enough force to break the ground beneath him.

"Bert!" She ran towards him, kneeling at his side. "Are you okay?"

The Budew was still conscious, but barely. Sighing with relief that he wasn't dead Inyssa grabbed his Pokeball and sent him to rest; he'd done enough for the day.

"Alright, you caught me off guard. It will not happen again," she told Roark, voice fierce.

From her belt she grabbed her first Pokeball, the one containing her starter. She threw it into the air and from it came the silhouette of his Chimchar. Enma fell into the arena, a savage smile pasted on his face.

"You seem to be pretty confident on your legs Enma, so I'd recommend you dodge this guy," she told his Pokemon, and since she knew he wouldn't listen to her unless she gave him an incentive... "Though maybe he's too strong for you; maybe you're not up to the task."

Enma's flame flared red, turning into a blinding light, and the small Pokemon set his eyes on the Cranidos, determined to end him. His abilities would not be underestimated.

She smiled proudly, "Use Ember!"

"Headbutt again!"

The Chimchar exhaled air, and while the Cranidos ran at him he spat a small torrent of fire towards him; quite bigger than a normal Ember but not as big as a Flamethrower attack. The fire engulfed the rock Pokemon, and when he emerged his body was covered in small burns. Seconds before his attack reached him Enma jumped out of the way, using his hand to propel himself over his head. He landed on Roark's side of the field, while the Cranidos used his momentum to turn around and ran at him once more.

"That's it, you can keep dodging him and using Ember!" Inyssa said, happy that she'd figured out a strategy. "It'll be easy, come on!"

But those were not the words that Enma wanted to hear; he desired nothing more than a fair fight, and escaping from a foe over and over was unacceptable. Stance wide, he grounded himself, arms in front of him and ready to receive his opponent's attack head on.

"What! No you dumbass, you can't stop him!" Inyssa protested, panic washing over her.

The impact from his attack shook the ground and raised a cloud of dust around them, obscuring their view. When it finally settled both figures could be seen together, staying still. Cranidos' head was being held by Enma with both his hands, although he'd been unable to fully stop the attack. His legs were shaking, and heavy shadows covered his eyes.

"Enma..." The whisper escaped her lips as she felt her veins turn to ice.

The Chimchar smiled. He would not be defeated so easily.

His body began to glow. It changed and shifted to almost twice his size, and his tail grew a few inches in length, its flame burning even stronger. The Monferno was now taller than Cranidos, and his violent smile was as present as ever. He raised one of his hands towards the sky, which started glowing with a white light, full of power.

"Wait, I know that attack..." Inyssa couldn't believe what'd happened, but she couldn't just stand there blinking, she had to finish this fight. "Enma, use Mach Punch!"

Enma drove his fist directly into the Cranidos' face, landing his body into the ground and breaking one of the spikes around his head. The dinosaur Pokemon screeched in pain, trying to keep himself in the fight.

"Yeah, that's it!" She pointed towards Roark's Pokemon and yelled. "Once more, Mach Punch! End this now!"

Enma jumped towards the Cranidos, fist extended backwards. But before he could land the hit his body failed him; his arms felt heavy and his eyes started closing, making him fall to the floor with a weak thump. He now laid unconscious at the Cranidos's side; he'd taken too much damage with that headbutt to stay up for much more.

Inyssa smiled, somewhat disappointed, and returned him back to his Pokeball. "It's okay, you did your best. Even if you're a little shit, you deserve some rest."

She deliberated for a second, not sure what Pokemon to choose. She knew the Cranidos couldn't have much energy left; a single attack could end the battle, but unless it was something strong...

She narrowed her eyes, and nodded to no one. She grabbed another Pokeball from her belt and threw it into the field. From it came the silhouette of one of her latest acquisitions; her Kricketune. Shadi looked around confused, and set her eyes on the wounded Cranidos who looked at her with fierce red eyes, ready to attack.

"Shadi, listen to me," Inyssa went to her Pokemon and put a hand on her shoulder. "I know you're probably scared, but I need you for this battle. Just follow my lead and I'm sure you'll be able to defeat that thing," she wasn't sure what words were coming out of her mouth, but it didn't matter, she had to make Shadi trust herself if this was going to work. "Just like we practiced with what Sarah gave us, okay?"

Shadi nodded slowly, eyes burning with determination, and turned to her opponent. Both Pokemon got ready, and at their trainer's orders they ran towards each other, ready for the final impact.

"Kricketune? What are you going to do, Bide my Cranidos?" She could hear the Gym leader snickering. "Come on Gundyr, one more attack and we'll win!"

"Hit him first Shadi, use Rock Smash!"

She smiled at the look of panic that appeared on the Gym leader's face. Sarah had given her that TM right after meeting her in front of the gym, probably knowing she'd need an aid like that.

Shadi's scythes filled with black energy, while Cranidos ran like a bullet towards her. Both Pokemon collided in a violent impact that cracked the rock beneath their feet. When she could finally set her eyes on the result of the Pokemon's attacks she saw that Cranidos had a huge X shaped wound on his side; Shadi had managed to break his skin. The Kricketot was standing beside him, her body shaking but still standing.

Cranidos groaned and fell to the floor. There was a brief moment of silence, where Inyssa felt like the entire world had shut down. But soon something inside her exploded and she started jumping in place, an enormous smile on her face.

"Yes! Yes! I did it!" She could see Barry running towards her, with a similar expression to hers. The boy tackled her and they both started laughing while hugging each other. "I told you all I could do it! I'm going to be the future Champion!"

Palmer and Sarah approached her from the stands, both with warm smiles and proud looks. When they reached her Palmer have her a pat in the head while Sarah hugged her strongly enough to squish the air out of her.

"I'm very proud of you," she whispered in her ear so no one could hear it.

"That was amazing!" Barry yelled while still grabbing her hand. "First that Budew with those two wins and then Enma evolving and then Shadi and then...!"

"We don't need a recap son, I think we all saw what happened," Palmer said, barely containing his laughter. "That was very impressive though, good job kid."

She didn't have words to reciprocate with, so she just smiled and tried not to think about the warm feeling inside her. Shadi finally reached her, slightly limping and with a huge wound on her chest. Inyssa hugged her and told her she'd definitely earned her place in her team. And with a flick of her Pokeball she returned her to it, so she could recover from that battle.

"Well, that was pretty embarrassing for me..."

Inyssa turned to see Roark beside her with something on his hand, expression unreadable. An uncomfortable silence filled the room, as both trainers were thinking about what to say.

"That was a good battle," he admitted, sighing. "Good enough to clear my head I suppose. I am sorry for what I said, it was completely out of place and very unprofessional of me."

Inyssa wanted to say a witty remark or spit on his face what she'd thought to say before Palmer interrupted them, but what came from her mouth was something completely different.

"I'm sorry too," she attempted to form a smile. "I was too demanding, and I probably sounded like a bratty kid when I started yelling. It was... unbecoming of the future Champion." She chose her words carefully, she didn't want to insult herself too much. "And you did give me a good challenge at the end."

"Let's both say we acted like children, and I will accept that I had less excuse than you," Roark laughed, and his smile wasn't hurtful for once. "It's just... I never asked to be a Gym leader, I just offered myself to keep my city from being overrun by the Association."

Inyssa frowned, understanding perfectly the feeling of trying to protect something you loved. She swallowed and thought about the problem for a couple seconds, and what came out of her mouth surprised even her.

"Once I become the Champion, I'll change that." She assured him. "I'll let you have your city and your mines, and you'll be able to work in peace."

He studied her for a few moments, brow furrowed, "That sounds like a very farfetched dream. Almost unachievable I'd say. But I'll take your word for it," he put his hand over hers and left something in it. "For now though, you've earned this."

She looked down to a small metal pin shaped like a Pokeball and a boulder; the Coal Badge.

"My first badge..."

Inyssa felt her eyes getting water-y at the sight of it, right up until Barry gave her a slap in the back hard enough to make her flinch.

"And definitely not the last!" He smiled, putting a hand around her shoulders. "Aren't you glad I let you go last?"

"Agh! Barry!" She turned to him and punched him in the arm, her expression something between a smile and a frown, "I'm still mad about that; next time we both take the challenge at the same time, got it?"

Palmer and Sarah looked at each other while both kids argued, and the tall blonde man smiled lightly.

"Ah, the wonders of being a young trainer," He sighed dreamily.

"It takes one back, don't you think?" Sarah told him in whispers, holding his arm. "I just hope things won't go... like last time."

Palmer's eyes lost part of their color for a moment, and his smile wavered.

"It's different now," he sounded like he was trying to convince himself. "They'll be fine... as long as they have each other."


	9. Bloody Pink

Inyssa almost wanted to put her new badge on the flap of her coat like a mark of pride, though part of her knew that she'd probably look like a novice who was too excited for her first, easy battle. Barry on the other hand had no second thoughts about it, proudly showing it to anyone who came close to him. She had to finally force him to save it on his badge case; he'd lose it otherwise.

Sarah and Palmer invited them to a fancy dinner in the most respectable (if one could use that word to describe it) restaurant in the city, but Inyssa didn't want to spend another minute around that smoke filled dump; besides, they had to hurry if they wanted to reach the next town on time.

"That was the correct answer!" Palmer nodded, arms crossed. "There is no time to sleep or eat in a Pokemon journey; all that matters is the next obstacle in the way!"

"Don't listen to him, please do make sure you're getting enough food and rest," his wife replied, looking at the man with knit eyebrows. "In any case, where are you planning to head next?"

Barry tilted his head to the side, still holding his badge case as if it were his own son, "Isn't the closest Gym in Eterna City?"

"Yes, right past route 206 and 207," Inyssa recounted, trying to remember the map of the region she'd studied. "It's a long way but we should be able to make it in a day if we hurry. And if I know your son as well as I do..." she glanced towards Barry and gave him a small bump with her elbow. "He'll make sure we don't slack off in the road there."

Barry's parents glanced at each other for a moment and tried to hide a smile, though Palmer was much less subtle about it.

"If you say so," Sarah gave her son a pat on the head. "Well then I guess we should take our leave if you kids are..."

Her words were interrupted by a loud, persistent beeping noise coming from the woman's pocket. With an exasperated sigh she grabbed the Pokétch and answered the call; the device being much bigger and personalized than the version the kids had gotten from Jubilife city.

"Yes, hello?" Sarah's voice changed instantly into a more firm, cold version of her tone. "Yes, Sarah Paladino here. I'm not in a position to talk right now, I notified that I would take a day out for my sons'..."

She stopped talking. Her expression changed slowly, almost unperceivable; her eyebrows knit together and her lips became pale.

"What? Where? What do you mean there was an... was it even an accident?" She turned away from the kids, shoulders tensing up. "Are there any wounded? Oh good, that will make things easier," she breathed a sigh of relief. "I'll get there as soon as possible, and I'll take the Frontier Brain with me. Make sure not to let anyone through until the officers from the Association show up."

With a loud tap she closed the device, lost in thought for a moment. She turned again to the kids and then to her husband, an ominous look on her face.

"I have bad news," she announced. "Something happened in route 206..."

"What's wrong!? Tornado!? Lava!? Legendary Pokemon!?" Palmer's eyes lit up with the same fire that Barry's. "What am I needed for?"

"Calm down you imbecile!" Sarah pushed him out of the way, face red. "There appears to have been a terrorist attack. Someone destroyed the bridge leading to Eterna City."

A cold silence surrounded the three trainers, passing through them like winter's cold.

"Destroyed?" Inyssa repeated without noticing it, not believing her ears. "What do you mean... it couldn't have been..."

"The entire bridge!?" Barry yelled next to her, for one second taking his eyes off his badge case. "But isn't like... really big?"

"The entire thing collapsed, and from what my coworker reported it wasn't an accident," Sarah crossed her arms, her foot tapping down quickly. "the people below heard Pokemon fighting, and then a huge explosion took down the bridge. Luckily there aren't any wounded, but that just means there are no witnesses either. And whoever did it probably escaped."

Inyssa felt something in her chest become heavy, and her stomach turned, "But... how are we going to get to the next Gym?" She asked, desperation on her voice.

"I'm afraid the Association is not letting anyone through the route, they're trying to identify the culprit," Sarah said. "Getting to Eterna City will be impossible for now."

"Aw, we have to stay here until then?" Barry's smile dropped in an instant, his shoulders lowering. "But that'll be boring!"

"Kids please, this is serious," Sarah glared at them, arms crossed. "I will let you know when the path opens again, but until then..." she dropped the sentence, and tried to smile again. "But it's okay, you can visit Floaroma Town in the meantime; I heard it's beautiful this time of year."

Inyssa had to stop herself from cursing in front of Sarah, tough she almost failed at that. She put a hand on her head, nervously shuffling her hair under her hat; this couldn't be happening. What were the odds? Just when she was in such a good mood too...

"This is just great," she closed her eyes and sighed. She didn't want to protest and sound bratty but this was a less than ideal development. "Is there anything interesting to do in Floaroma?"

"Yeah, we don't have time to smell flowers mom!" Barry put his hands on his hip as if he was giving her a lecture. "We're extremely busy Pokemon trainers you know!"

"It'll be good for you, trust me," Sarah replied exasperated, her patience running thin. "You two could afford to relax for a couple days."

Palmer nodded at his wife's words and grabbed a Pokeball from the pocket of his big green coat, "Good life lesson kids; sometimes you gotta follow whatever path your adventure puts in front of you. Unless it leads to a volcano, that was a bad idea on my part. In any case, we'll let you know when the roadblock is lifted; and if you want I can take you two to Floaroma right now."

"Palmer, I need you on the scene," Sarah told him, grabbing his arm. "If you're going to give them a ride then make it quick, you'll have you to run some recognisance around the crime scene."

"I'll be back before you know it. Or even before that, that's how fast I am!"

He threw the Pokeball upwards into the sky, which exploded into a white light that started growing more and more until the silhouette above them covered the sun itself. The strange form grew two giant, crescent shaped wings and a small head with a long neck . Wind roared in their ears as the behemoth started flapping his wings. Inyssa's body was frozen, the sight of such a beast leaving her breathless. The Salamance's eyes were set on the two kids, red shining like suns.

"W...wh...Th..." Inyssa tried to speak but her brain wasn't cooperating. "Holy..."

"This is the best day of my life," Barry whispered, eyes unblinking.

Palmer stroked his chin, satisfied with the kids' reactions.

"Are you kids impressed? This is Makura, my best buddy," he whistled to the dragon Pokemon to come down, who did so reluctantly. "He's a bit of a grump but he has a heart of gold. What do you think?"

The Salamance turned his gaze slowly towards Inyssa, as if  expecting her answer. The moment his eyes met hers the girl's legs turned to jelly and a violent shiver ran through her back. She had a feeling that thing could eat her if he didn't like her opinion of him.

"...I've seen scarier," she responded, high pitched.

The dragon's eyes narrowed, and for a second she thought she saw him snicker a bit, after which he turned to his master, awaiting orders.

"He seems to like you, so that's something," Palmer put a hand over his Pokemon's snout. "Alright boy, I'll need you to take all three of us to Floaroma, think you can handle it?"

Inyssa could feel the dragon's roar in the ground before he opened his mouth, shaking the air around them and forcing them to block their ears. She assumed that was a  _yes_  in Salamance speak.

Palmer performed what appeared to be a circus jump right into the back of the Salamance, who barely felt the adult human on top of him. "Hop in, kids! He won't bite, probably."

With a slow pace she approached the dragon , while Barry simply ran towards it and jumped on his back like his father did. But the Salamance's eyes were not set on him, but on Inyssa. The girl felt the red gleams piercing her body, and for once in her life she wasn't going to be a smartass and try to anger the incredibly powerful beast. With as much tact as possible she put one leg on top of his knee while she pushed herself upwards, landing face first behind Barry.

"Are you sure this is your best mode of transportation available?" She asked Palmer, her hands shaking.

"The best legal one at least," Palmer smiled and looked down at his wife. "Would you mind covering for me again? Just tell them I'm doing very important Frontier Brain things and I'll be there as soon as I'm done."

"Yeah sure, I already have a speed dial for covering you up," Sarah said as she showed her Pokétch, sardonic tone. "Just try not to crash into another airplane."

"A what!?" Inyssa screamed from behind Barry, suddenly not feeling too sure about their current situation.

"That's in the past Sarah!" He pointed a finger at her. "I'm a better man now. Let's go Makura, towards Floaroma!"

Inyssa couldn't see what was happening but she felt the Salamance's wings flapping around her, and the horrible feeling in her stomach told her they were slowly ascending. When she finally dared to look down she saw only a black spot that she assumed was Sarah, many feet below her. She was debating herself wether to put her arms around Barry to keep herself steady, since no one could see the color of her face while they flew, or just grab the scales of the dragon Pokemon and possibly slip off and die. She was seriously considering her options when she heard Palmer speak.

"Grab on to something! This will get intense fast!"

The Salamance's body began to glow with a scarlet aura, wings arched back, and Inyssa felt a strange pressure in the air around her ears. Her arms moved on their own, grabbing on to Barry as strongly as possible, and she inhaled deeply.

The immense force almost made her fall from the dragon's back, the air around her exploding into a sonic boom and obscuring the view below into a blur of lights and shapes barely recognizable. The small part of her brain that was still working thought that there was no way she could hold on, but she slowly felt that the wind around her became less and less violent as seconds went by, and when she dared to open her eyes she noticed that they were now traveling at a more reasonable speed. They were still fast, but she could at least recognize the landscapes below as they soared. In front of her Barry was either trying to say something or just making random excitement sounds as his blonde banana hair waved violently behind him, hitting Inyssa in the face.

Slowly the knot in her stomach unraveled, and her eyes started exploring everything below her, from the brown stone around Oreburgh's caves to the endless sea of green that were the surrounding routes. A smile appeared on her face as her breath was taken by the amazing view. Excitedly she turned her neck in all directions, trying to take it all in; but her gaze finally set in on a single point, almost directly behind her. Her smile disappeared as she witnessed a giant, oppressive wall of smoke coming from the north of Oreburgh, covering most of the sky around it. That must have been where the bridge was destroyed, which meant...

A flash of green appeared from the pillar of smoke and flew in front of her eyes, passing all of them towards what she guessed was Floaroma Town. The Pokemon almost crashed with them but made a last second pirouette and his green leaf wings almost touched her face. The person on top of the Pokemon turned her face towards them, and Inyssa could only see a flash of pink that she assumed was the girl's hair.

"Watch where you're flying you jackass!" She barely heard the woman's voice as her Pokemon sped towards the town, slowly disappearing.

"Ah, lovely," Palmer said in front of her, only a speck of sarcasm in his voice. "We're almost there kids, hold on tight!"

Her stomach turned as the Salamance dropped downwards and they started falling into Floaroma at an alarming speed. She could see a blur of colors that she assumed were the fields of flowers. Only seconds before reaching the ground the Salamance's wings extended greatly, absorbing momentum and decreasing the speed of his fall, until it finally landed on solid ground as smoothly as a falling leaf.

Inyssa tried to get off the dragon but her body was too stiff and she simply slipped off and went straight to the ground. While her face was getting accustomed with the dirt beneath her she heard Barry talking to her.

"That was... WHOOHOO! That was the best!" He grabbed her by the arm and janked her upwards, helping her to her feet. "Wasn't that the best Niss?"

"It was... something, alright," She tried to clean the dirt off her clothes but her arms were still shaking. "I think I need to... lie down for a second."

The Salamance made a growly sound that Inyssa thought was a laugh. She was going to kick that dragon's ass once she had a better team.

"Well, I have to go before I put Sarah in even more trouble." Palmer spoke on top of his Pokemon. "Have fun kids! And remember, don't accept weird flowers from people unless they're a declaration of love! Goodbye!"

Before she even had the change to say something crude to him the Salamance extended his wings once more and flew up towards the sky, disappearing from their view. Barry smiled, his hair still an indescribable mess from the wind, and breathed deeply, taking in the sweet aroma. She had to admit to herself, this place was very pretty, all around them brightly painted houses filled the place and countless trees, flowers and plants grew at the sides of the streets and in the walls, making it seem like nature was overrunning the city. Hundreds of different flower smells traveled the air, confusing her nose and making it hard to breathe.

"Did you hear that Niss? If you wanna confess your love to someone then here you can find all the flowers you want!" He patted her on the back strongly and let out a high pitched laugh. "Just make sure it's not a Sunflora."

"If I had to do that I don't think I'd get you a bunch of lame flowers," she spoke without thinking, still concentrating on the overwhelming smell. "Maybe a stack of pancakes."

There was a long silence that Inyssa didn't notice until she turned to Barry. He was looking at her, one eyebrow raised and a sly smile on his face.

"I didn't specify who you were gonna confess your love to."

Inyssa froze, and suddenly she felt like the temperature rose a bit.

"So hey, what is there to do around here?" she looked away. "We should probably look around, see what we find."

Barry put a hand over his stomach, "I'm hungry, I haven't eaten since like... breakfast. We should find the Pokemon Center first."

"Breakfast was two hours ago."

"It was a really uneventful breakfast," he sighed. "Toast and coffe, the same as nothing."

"I had nothing and I'm not complaining, you big crybaby," she started looking around, trying to find any recognizable landmark. "Let's split up. You look for the Pokemon Center and book us a couple rooms, and I'll search for something to do later."

"Alright, I'll try to save you something," Barry put himself in his usual running position, and turned his head to her before taking off. "Don't get in trouble without me!"

And with that he disappeared into the distance.

Inyssa's stroll through the town was as uneventful as it was pleasant, taking in every single sight that presented itself to her and slowly appreciating the beauty of everything. Part of her thought that as tacky and overdone as the whole flower aesthetic was, she wouldn't mind living here after becoming the champion. Sure would beat living in Oreburgh or Jubilife.

Everyone she met and talked to seemed unusually nice, and while they were a couple sleazy flower sellers around most people were just happy giving them away to any stranger that passed by. She imagined that she must've looked like a foreigner from her clothes, since everyone seemed to be wearing some variation of summer attires, lots of sundresses and beach shorts around.

She was walking around a bright violet painted block of houses when she heard something close to her, at the other side of one of the hallways in between two houses. She didn't have any reason to stop, but something inside her made her body freeze at the sound of that voice. She stopped right before the hallway and put her ear close to the bricks.

"...likely their strongest, just to get us. It was a smart distraction, yes, but that doesn't mean they don't have their full attention on us," it was a young woman's voice, and it sounded jagged and tired, "...no, we won't disappear, I don't care how many people they throw at us... Will you listen to me before complaining? We'll stay low for now, but we have to keep going if we want to stop them. Sorry but if you're gonna use me I'll have to make you pay rent, metaphorically speaking. We'll start with..."

She stopped talking, and a long silence extended from that hallway towards where Inyssa was. After a couple seconds she realized that the silence felt heavy somehow, as if it was surrounding her like weightless water. Before she had time to turn away the woman appeared from the other side of that hallway, and Inyssa almost had a heart attack from the surprise.

She was easily six feet tall and looked around twenty, beefy and wearing a sleeveless black shirt with fishnet under it and a golden halo in the middle, under which were the words  _No God_. Her hair was a bright pink on the tips and brown on the base, making her head look like a paintbrush.

The strange woman blinked, and for a single moment the blue of her eyes seemed to change into a bright yellow, although that dissapeared as soon as she blinked once more. She didn't seem to have any sort of Pokétch or ear piece or any device that would explain who she was talking to. Her left shoulder was covered in a white cloth that seemed to be stained with blood, and she appeared to be hurt in other places in her body, even if her posture didn't reveal that.

She stared right at Inyssa for a couple seconds, her expression shifting between surprise, anger and obliviousness as she quickly blinked and turned away from her gaze. She walked right past her, shadows covering her eyes.

"Good day," she whispered while passing, slightly limping.


	10. The Shapeless Vanguard

 

The scream reached her before the storm did.

The strange girl disappeared into the sea of people walking through the main streets, and yet at no point did Inyssa stop looking her way. She'd vanished as soon as she invaded her sight, only leaving in her mind that flash of pink that seemed so familiar to her.

But she wasn't thinking about that, nor about the blood staining the girl's arm or her rugged appearance. Her mind was completely focused on that bright, maybe imaginary golden hue that for a fraction of a second appeared behind her eyes. Had she imagined it? It was probably just a trick of light as she exited the dark hallway, or maybe the oppressive aromas all around her were messing with her head. But still she didn't believe her mind could make up such a powerful color, not even for that second.

_How did she..._

Part of her was debating whether to follow her, when the scream rang out behind her.

She turned around fast, feeling a chill run through her body. Had she imagined that too? All around her, people kept walking as if they'd heard nothing.

Inyssa closed her eyes and concentrated; a few seconds passed without any change, and just when she convinced herself it had been her imagination another scream reached her. This time the cry was more faint; she turned around and entered through the same dark space between houses the girl had appeared from, running towards the source of that sound.

She spiraled between the strangely built hallways around the nearby houses until she came out at the feet of one of the smaller side streets, leading north towards the exit of the city. She ran in that direction, the noise getting louder with every step she took, until she finally got past the last house at the edge of the town and saw Route 205 laying before her. An even wider patch of flowers grew in every direction, with no buildings to block the view. Focusing her sight on the side of the route she spotted the figure of a man next to one of the many robust oak trees that gave shade to the road. The scream she heard came from something hidden between its leaves.

As she approached it she could make out the man's appearance; he was short and chubby, with a strange haircut and wearing the same body suit as those wackos she'd encountered in Jubilife City.

"Hey, Galactic clown!" She yelled as high as she could, making the man stop in his tracks and turn to look at her, eyes open wide. "Leave that tree alone!" She spoke, only after realizing how lame of a one liner that was. "I mean, leave alone whatever is up there. You're not gonna steal another Pokemon on my watch!"

His eyes set on her and his shoulders dropped, "Oh great, it's you again," he spat back, face red with anger. He took a Pokeball out of his suit and pointed it at her. "I don't have time to deal with you, so run along before I hurt you."

"Again?" Inyssa knit her eyebrows. "Oh! You were one of those losers back in Jubilife! Jonathan, was it? Well I'm sad to disappoint you but I'm in a bad mood and I don't feel like running from a weird cosplayer with anger issues." She also grabbed a Pokeball from her belt, a smile pasted on her face. "How about another battle? One on one this time."

"I'm Dione! That one was my partner, and his name is Janus, not... agh!" He threw both hands to the air. "No point in talking, I'm gonna have to force you to leave."

He threw his only Pokeball into the air, and from it emerged a winged oval figure, purple and with a huge gaping mouth, sharp fangs glistening with poison. The Golbat started soaring around Inyssa, waiting for his master's orders.

"I'm going to see that in my nightmares," Inyssa commented, eyes set on the horrible bat creature. "Kuro, take that thing out of the air!"

The Shinx appeared from the flash of light, and the moment he came into view a deep roar came from his mouth, shaking the grass around him and unnerving the bat Pokemon.

"Oh right, Intimidate," Dione grabbed a tuft of hair, biting his lower lip. "Good move, but I'm prepared for that. Air Cutter!"

"Spark! Right on his dumb mouth!"

Kuro ran at full speed towards his opponent, body slowly producing electricty from the friction. Only a few feet from reaching him the Shinx jumped with all his strenght while the Golbat batted his wings at incredible speed towards him. The wind created by the flying Pokemon cut Kuro's momentum short, sending him back towards the ground before he had a chance to land a hit. The Golbat suddenly stopped and his wings started vibrating quickly, coating them with a blue-ish glow as he prepared his attack, the energy emanating from him being much stronger than Inyssa thought possible.

"Oh... right, Air Cutter is pretty strong," Inyssa whispered to herself, biting her lip. "Kuro, try to dodg..."

Before she could complete her sentence something flew in between the leaves of the nearby tree and towards the Golbat. A small stone hit him right between the eyes with enough force to break his concentration. The energy from the attack he was readying dissipated into the air as the bat Pokemon flew in circles, shrieking in pain.

A high pitched voice came from the tree, startling both trainers "Yeah, take that you dum-dum!"

"Oh hey, it wasn't a Pokemon," she commented, curling her lips into a smile. "Kuro, use Spark again!"

The Shinx didn't have to be told twice; before she even said the word he ran once more towards the Golbat, and this time as he jumped he tackled him with so much force that the electric impulse sent him falling onto the bed of flowers at the side of the route. Dione's mouth gaped, his face turning read as realization came to him.

"Aaand the yellow devil Kuro takes his first official win against that flying abomination!" Inyssa yelled with her hands in her mouth, imitating a commentator's voice. "So Dyrone, do you have any more Pokemon or was that all you had to offer?"

She looked up at him waiting for a response and her smile dissapeared. All the signs of anger from the grunt's face were gone, turning into a mask of desperation and fear as he stood still looking at his defeated Pokemon.

"Oh man, oh man... shit, shit, shit!" He drove his hands to his hair, looking like he was about to rip it out. "This is bad... I'm going to... Mars is gonna..." he stammered as his voice broke. "No... I have to find reinforcements, maybe if I'm with Janus she won't... I have to hurry up before she finds out!"

Dione shot Inyssa a look that was a mix between anger and frustration, and without saying a word he turned around, running east towards a side path of Route 205. Inyssa took a deep breath, a satisfied smile on her face, and put Kuro back in his Pokeball for a very deserved rest. She walked towards the tree that the noise was coming from, and at its feet she looked up to see two almond eyes set on her.

"You can come down now," she told the kid, trying immitate Sarah's calming tone. "I scared the bad guy so he won't be bothering you anymore."

She heard a faint whimper coming from up there, and slowly the little girl started making her way down the tree, her limbs trembling. Inyssa put her hands up and helped her down by grabbing her legs as she slid towards her. Part of the girl's hair got on Inyssa's face as she fell on her arms, dark brown covering her vision and making her cough hair. As she put her feet on the ground Inyssa could finally see her appearance; the kid must not have been more than eight, she was skinny and was wearing a green sundress with brown boots. Her breathing was heavy and her lips trembled from fear.

"Th...thank you Miss," she spoke almost in whispers, trying to form a smile. "You were really cool!"

"Heh... well, what can I say...," Inyssa scratched her face, cheeks turning red. "All in a day's work I guess. Anyway, are you okay? Why was that loser chasing you, did he want to steal your Pokemon?"

"I'm Katie," she introduced herself, vowing down slightly. "I don't have Pokemon. He wanted to take me back, you have to help me Miss!"

"Hey hey, calm down," Inyssa put a hand on the little girl's shoulder. "You're safe now, okay? And you can call me... Niss," she paused for a second. "Huh, I guess it does sound kind of like Miss..."

"No, you don't understand, you have to help me!" Katie turned her hands into little fists and pouted. "Those weird people have my dad! I ran away and then he chased me but dad is still there!"

"Those grunts kidnapped your father?" She asked her for confirmation, and Katie nodded slowly, her eyes welling up with tears. "Where is he?"

"He was working and I was there, and then those people appeared and they didn't want anyone to leave," Katie explained, talking faster and faster. "They're back there in the... wind thingies," she could see the kid trying to remember the place's name, but it wasn't necessary; Inyssa had studied the region's map very closely.

"You mean the Valley's Windworks?" She asked, and Katie nodded. "That's not too far from here."

"Dad is all alone and he needs help!" She cried, her voice breaking. "And the other lady's in there too! She was there and then she wasn't herself and it was scary and I..."

"Katie, listen to me," Inyssa whispered, looking her in the eyes. "It'll be okay, I'll get your dad, but I'm gonna need your help, okay?"

She nodded once more and Inyssa started to form a plan in her mind. If Katie's father was in trouble then the faster she moved the better, but she didn't know how well guarded the place was. Although even with a dozen of those fashion disasters running around she was pretty sure she could handle them as long as she was careful; besides, that would certainly look good on the news when the story spread around.

"Do you know where the Pokemon Center is?"

Katie pointed west, towards the main street of Floaroma, "Yeah... it's like five blocks away there."

"Good, I need you to run there and tell the nurse what happened," she instructed her, trying to sound more confident than she was. "Make her call the police, and if you spot a blonde kid my age, with hair that looks like a banana, tell him too and explain to him where I am."

"Y-yes Niss," the kid smiled nervously. "Are you gonna go there alone?"

Inyssa twitched one corner of her mouth into a smile, and took a hand to her hair, attempting to look cool.

"I can handle it, don't worry about it," she assured her. "Now hurry before more of them show up."

Katie did as she was told and started running as fast as she could towards the city, her long brown hair waving behind her. Inyssa stood still on one knee, thinking. She felt a strange, cold shiver in her stomach but she did her best to ignore it. As she stood up her gaze turned towards east, where Dione had run to. Without thinking twice about it she started walking in that direction, towards the Valley Windworks.

 

* * *

 

 

The air became heavy as she approached the building, the unique geography of the valley turning the place into a wind maelstrom. She needed both hands on her hat at all times just to prevent it from flying away, and pieces of grass were constantly hitting her in the face, forcing her to walk with her eyes half closed. On the bright side there was no way they could see her coming with so much dust in the air. The Windworks lay only a few feet from her; a wide, sturdy building with only two floors and almost no windows, the few it had being purposefully hidden from the wind's direction.

The first sign that something was wrong came to her as she saw the door wide open, the frame going forwards and backwards, slamming itself repeatedly due to the wind's strength. The inside looked like a poorly illuminated hallway, leading towards a bigger circular room in the middle. Inyssa stood in the door for almost a minute, thinking about how to proceed. Something inside her was telling her to turn around and leave; her legs were trembling and her lips were dry; but she attributed that mostly to the wind. Slowly she grabbed one of her Pokeballs, and stared at it for a few seconds.

"I can do this," she told no one, the wind swallowing her words. "I can do this. Steven, come out!"

The flash of light illuminated everything around her as the bird Pokemon appeared from it, his body instinctively adjusting to the powerful wind. Without much trouble he started flying in the same direction as it, moving his wings accordingly.

"Listen carefully, I need you to cover my surroundings," Inyssa told him when he came down to her shoulder. "I'm gonna go in and I don't know what's inside. You'll have to fly around the building and spy in between the windows. If you see people coming for me then distract them, and if the police or Barry come here you'll have to guide them to me. Do you understand?"

Steven nodded with his little head, and with his beak he gave Inyssa a small bite on the cheek. She smiled, happy to have such a smart Pokemon around, and with a movement of her arm sent him upwards where the Starly began flying in circles once more.

She entered through the door, her feet moving slowly and her eyes open wide as to take everything in. As she advanced the sound of the wind began to dissipate, the thick walls blocking any sound coming from the outside.

When she reached the end of the hallway she leaned her body on one of the walls and carefully looked around the corner, ready to grab a Pokeball in case of any trouble. However the lobby was empty, only a spacious circular space filled with nothing but pots, a couple of sofas for waiting and an empty's receptionist table in the middle. At the sides of the back right wall there were two other doors, one of them leading deeper into the building and the other one opening to a staircase which led to the second floor.

A deep, guttural grunt of pain made its way towards Inyssa, freezing her body as she heard it. Was that the girl's father? The thought made her legs move, and throwing caution to the wind she began running through the circular room and toward the hallway.

As she made her way through the narrow path the sound became clearer to the point where she could almost hear it next to her. She ignored all the office doors that she saw and simply kept running towards the main lab room. When she finally arrived she forgot to hide herself and busted through the door by kicking it.

The place was small, only containing two big, complicated machines at the sides of the room and safety rails on the middle, forming a small path that lead towards the next room. Inyssa came expecting a fight, but her body relaxed when she saw that next to the rails were only two people, one of whom was lying on the floor, hands covering his face and a moan of pain coming from his mouth. Next to whom Inyssa recognized as Dione was his partner Janus, trying to help his friend to his feet. As soon as she appeared however the tall Galactic grunt turned his head towards her, his previously gentle expression turning into a mask of rage.

"You!" His voice was nothing like his usual sultry tone, now becoming a guttural growl directed towards her. "You did this to him!"

Inyssa stopped in her tracks and tried to study both grunts, unable to see into Dione's face. She frowned as she tried to put the pieces together.

"I only beat him in a Pokemon battle," she responded, eyes set on the two. "If later he tripped and broke his nose that's not my problem. Now tell me where do you have that girl's father before I make you," she tried to sound fierce, but a strange feeling in her chest made her words sound dull.

"You... you don't understand anything," Janus' spat back, arms still around his partner. "Because he failed... if I would've been there with him...," his voice broke down, and for a moment he seemed to be about to cry. "It doesn't matter, when she shows up you'll be done for. She's going to..."

"No one is going to harm anyone else here."

The voice came from the other side of the hallway, filling the entire room. From the door appeared a tall, bearded man dressed in a brown suit and hat. His facial features made him look around thirty, and although she could see most of his face, part of his eyes were obscured by his hat and flocks of brown hair.

"You two will cause no more harm in my laboratory," he spoke with a calm, low pitched voice that made Inyssa felt a small shiver on the back of her neck. "Greetings Miss, I assume you were the one to beat this... well I hesitate to call him a trainer," he said as he looked down at Dione.

Janus's face went from surprise to confusion, and for a second he seemed to be about to say something, but the tall man shot him a puzzling look and the Galactic grunt closed his mouth. Inyssa stared at him for a couple seconds, refusing to drop her guard.

"Yeah, I'm the one," She replied, head high. "Are you the girl's father? She told me you were being held prisoner."

His mouth twisted into a strange smile as he let out a small laugh. "Ah yes, Katie that wonderful angel. If it weren't for her I wouldn't have had the chance to set myself free, but with only one of these idiots around that ceased to be a problem."

Inyssa's body relaxed after hearing Katie's name, and she allowed herself to smile.

"I'm glad I could help out. Your daughter... she's a very brave girl."

"I guess she got that from her father," the man laughed, slowly walking closer. "Where is she now? Did she make it safely to the city?"

"Yeah, I made sure she went straight to the Pokemon Center," Inyssa explained, putting her hand away from her belt full of Pokeballs. "She was going to tell the nurse to contact the police, so they should be here any moment now."

"Perfect, that should wrap up things here." He put his palms together and smiled, perhaps too brightly, while close to him Janus trembled with fear. "I believe that would be those shapes approaching from the west, don't you think?" He pointed towards the window at the back of Inyssa, eyes covered in shadow.

"What? Oh yeah they sh..." She turned around, gaze trying to focus in the outside of the building.

There was no one there.

She didn't have time to process what happened. Her entire body trembled as the air around her became heavy and she was suddenly unable to breathe. Her limbs froze and her throat turned dry. A hand grabbed her by the arm with almost enough force to dislocate her shoulder and lifted her upwards, taking her feet of the ground and forcing a painful grunt out of her. Before she could react she felt another hand taking grabbing her belt, and with it all of her Pokeballs.

"To be honest..." The voice behind her spoke slowly, savoring every word. "I didn't think the person who defeated Dione would be so easily fooled by a trick like this."

She tried to turn around but as soon as she did the person holding her threw her forward, her body flying a few feet toward the hallway's entrance. A sharp pain pierced her left arm as she fell on it, her mind going momentarily blank by the impact. She heard a couple of voices near her, and the vibrations of someone walking towards her resonated inside her head. Painfully she tried to get up, only managing to sit, right arm supporting the rest of her body, gaze looking upwards to the man who had just assaulted her. She could see his eyes now, a dull, muddy red looking down at her, as his lips were contorted into a cold smile. On his left hand he held Inyssa's belt with all of her Pokeballs in it.

"Wh..." She tried to speak, but her voice came out weak. "You... give me that back!" She yelled with all the strength she had. "Aren't you the girl's... are you on their side?"

"I'm afraid I... ah, pulled your leg, metaphorically speaking." He laughed at his own joke, placing a hand over his mouth. "But no, I'm not Katie's father, he is safely tied up in the back room, waiting until this all blows over," he explained, his voice melodious. "As for my true identity... well, just see for yourself, I'm sure that will be much more educational than a boring explanation."

The man took a step forwards, positioning himself a few inches from her. He closed his eyes and raised both hands slightly. For a few seconds nothing happened, but just when she was about to stand up she heard it; a horrible, reverberating sound filled the air as the man's body began to melt. Inyssa couldn't find another word to describe it; she watched in horror as his skin, hair and clothes began to bubble and shift as if they were made of rubber, turning into a bright, pink substance. The strange blob contracted and began accumulating on the stranger's shoulder, forming what appeared to be an irregular flat body with two dot eyes and a stretched mouth which was a simple line.

What a few moments ago was a tall, dark haired man now appeared before her as a young woman dressed in almost the same uniform as the two Galactic grunts behind her, with a Ditto sitting on her shoulders. Her hair was the color of blood, and her face was angular and slim, a long smile pasted onto her thin lips. The only thing that hadn't changed about her were those cold red eyes, now set directly on Inyssa.

"What... what the fuck are you!?" The words came out of her mouth without her realizing, and she unconsciously started sliding backwards, away from the strange woman.

"You may call me Mars," she stated matter of factly as she performed a short, mocking bow. "I am one of Team Galactic's four commanders. And this right here is my dear companion," she pointed with one finger towards the Ditto on her shoulder, who's expression was still blank. "He doesn't have a name, so feel free to call him whatever you want, all right?"

She slowly walked toward Inyssa, whose body was frozen by the horrible chill behind the woman's voice. Behind her, Dione's grunts had stopped, and now the man simply stood still as he held his face on his hands.

"Get away from me!" Inyssa's voice came out as a shriek, until she realized that yelling was pointless. That woman called Mars still had all of her Pokeballs, and even if she tried to run she wouldn't get far. She had to think of another way out. "I... I mean... how did you... do that?" she tried to sound collected but her voice was breaking from fear.

She smiled as her eyes glanced towards the Ditto, "I'm afraid that's a secret," she replied, crossing her arms playfully. "If I went around telling everyone then no one would find me interesting! Let's just say... my Ditto here is a very cooperative fellow."

Inyssa frowned, not understanding a word out of the woman's mouth. She looked everywhere, her mind racing to think of a way to get her Pokeballs from Mars and finding a way out of there. Maybe if she just bought some time the police would arrive and save her.

"Who are you people?" she asked, hoping for a long answer. "What are you trying to do here?"

"We are Team Galactic," she performed another mocking bow, "but according to dear Dione you already knew that. We've been trying to create a new world that's better than this one, although people have shown little understanding about our goals and motives. I would hope a bright youth like you would understand, but unfortunately I am not allowed to say more. It's a little saddening..."

She nodded slowly, pretending to understand her words, and when she realized that was the only answer she was going to get on the matter she decided to change the subject.

"Then, if Katie's father didn't break out, what happened to  _him_?" She pointed slowly towards Dione, momentarily supporting her body with the rails at her side.

"That's none of your business!" Janus' scream was heard from the other side of the room as he held his friend in his arms. "It was all your fault!"

"Now now Janus, don't be rude," Mars raised her left hand toward him and he instantly closed his mouth. "For your information, this is now the third time Dione has failed to complete his objective, and every time, just before it happened he assured me he had everything under control," she said, her eyes drifting from the wounded man to Inyssa. "Whether from lies or misjudgment of his own abilities, I don't appreciate being misinformed. So I punished him slightly, as to motivate him to grow stronger in the future."

For the first time since Inyssa entered the room, she heard Dione's voice.

"And I deserve what happened, my commander!" His high pitched voice sounded pained and irregular, as if he were having difficulty speaking. "I promise... I won't let you down again!"

Janus simply looked at his friend, lips trembling and eyes wide open. Mars glanced back at him and smiled.

"That doesn't answer my question. What did you do to him?"

Mars stood still for a few seconds. The silence around her became heavy and opressive, swallowing everything in its path.

"Have you ever heard the story..." she whispered, eyes lost in thought, "...of the man who traded his eye for a better sight?"

Inyssa's heart sunk, a painful cold washing over her. She looked towards the wounded man at the other side of the hallway, a part of her not wanting to see it but too curious to avoid it. The hand Dione was using to cover part of his face was dripping with blood, right over where his left eye should've been. A gasp got caught in her throat. Her entire body was shaking now, any sign of bravery or calmness thrown out the window as she lay there in the floor, immobile and scared out of her mind.

"Now..." Mars broke the silence, her voice cutting the air like a knife. "Do you have any more questions, kid?"

She spoke as if she were a teacher prompting a student, but Inyssa could feel the threat in her voice. She tried to think of anything to say to buy a little more time, but her mind was blank. Her eyes darted around the room looking for anything that could help her, and right when she thought she was doomed she saw a speck of grey behind one of the windows near her. Mars couldn't see it since it was behind her, but Steven's silhouette was on the other side, watching Inyssa intently, waiting for orders.

With enormous effort she got to her knees, right hand on the floor supporting her body.

"I think that's all, thanks for the information," she did her best to smile, even though her body was still shaking. "And my name is Inyssa, not kid." She finally managed to stand up, and with burning gaze she set her eyes on Mars' ruby ones. "Steven, now!"

The window exploded into a hail of broken glass as Steven crashed in, wings covered in energy. Mars was taken aback for a moment as the flying Pokemon's beak approached Inyssa's belt. Unfortunately she was quick to react and was able to get it out of the way just before Steven could reach it; as it was he could only hit one of the Pokeballs with his wings, sending it rolling towards Inyssa. He veered upwards and flew to his master, landing on her shoulders.

"Commander Mars!" Janus' voice was heard over the torrent of wind now entering through the window. "Are you okay?"

Mars lifted her left hand towards him, and once again Janus stopped talking immediately.

"I'm fine Janus, thanks for your concern," she interrupted him. "It was my own fault for not paying attention."

Inyssa gripped the Pokeball in her hand as strongly as possible. Her plan had only half worked, she couldn't retrieve her belt but maybe with two of her Pokemon at her disposal she could get the rest back. Steven was chirping loudly on her shoulder, ready to fight, and with both aerial and ground coverage she could probably overwhelm whatever Mars had in store. She pressed the button on the Pokeball and a flash of light invaded the room. She crossed her fingers, hoping Enma would appear, but her heart dropped as she saw the silhouette of a Bidoof forming itself from that light. Bertha emerged in between Mars and her, eyes sunken and a concerned expression on her face.

"Bertha..." Inyssa's tone of disappointment was as plain as day. "It... it doesn't matter, I can still do this," she told herself, breathing deeply. "Bertha, listen! We have to fight to save the rest of our friends!"

The small rodent Pokemon didn't move for a few seconds, looking directly at her master. Her head moved up and down slowly, in what she considered a nod, and with her whole body shaking she turned to face Mars. The woman was simply cleaning off specks of dust of her uniform, not a line of concern on her face.

"A Pokemon fight, eh? I'm a bit rusty on that field but..." she shrugged. "I can't say no after you got me like that," she looked over her shoulder toward the door at the other side of the room. "Hey, how much until we finish gathering all the energy we need!?"

Two figures appeared at the other side of the door; the Galactic grunts appeared to be trying to spy their boss and the intruder. One of them approached Mars carefully, eyes avoiding hers.

"It'll only be a couple more minutes, commander," he spoke reverently, head down. "We should probably ready our escape."

"Tell Charon to ready the Pokemon, instruct them to teleport us away when it's needed. And as for Dione..." she turned to the wounded man, and for a moment Janus looked like he'd throw himself between them. "Help Janus carry him, and make sure he gets medical care once we get back to the base."

The grunt did as he was told; he grabbed Dione by the arm and together with Janus they helped him get on his feet. Once he got up Inyssa could finally see the mess of red that showed what was left of his left eye, now only a mush of meat that made her stomach turn. The man looked up for the first time, and remaining eye tried to find hers. The part of his face that wasn't covered in blood was twisted into a terrible expression of rage and pain that paralyzed Inyssa. Just before he was carried away he opened his mouth and uttered words that were lost into the wind. Whatever it was, she didn't think it was something nice.

"And now that we're finally alone..." Mars spoke with a melodious tone, hiding her right hand behind her back. "Shall we begin?"

From the pocket of her skirt she grabbed a completely white Pokeball, with only a small red line going through the middle. She pressed its button without much fanfare and another flash of light exploded in front of her, taking the shape of a big, fat quadruped cat-like Pokemon. His body was quite bigger than it's pre-evolution and his face had lost all prettiness it previously had. The Purugly produced a sound from its throat that was half between a growl and a purr, his expression that of annoyance.

Inyssa cringed at the sight of that thing, her heart pounding on her chest. A fully evolved Pokemon? Even two on one it was going to be a nightmare fighting that thing. But she couldn't let worry consume her now, her friends needed her.

"Bertha, use Defense Curl! Steven, Double Team!" She did her best to put all her will into her voice, even if the wind was covering most of it.

"Faint Attack on Starly," Mars spoke, arms crossed and only barely paying attention to the fight.

The Bidoof positioned herself on the ground, and a strange blue aura started covering her entire body and fortifying her defenses. Meanwhile Steven jumped into the air and his body began glowing, many different fakes of himself surrounding him and obscuring his location. The Purugly simply observed this happen as he lazily walked towards both of them, eyes gleaming with hostility. His body crouched, the muscles on his legs contracting, and with a sudden jump he appeared in front of all the Starlies, claws brimming with dark energy. With a huge arc the slash hit every one of them, effortlessly finding the real one and sending him towards the floor where he barely managed to stay above ground, a deep cut on the side of his body.

"Steven! Shit, I forgot about Faint Attack..." she bit her thumb while thinking about her next move. "Use Wing Attack! Bertha, cover him with Rollout!"

"Fury Swipes," Mars whispered.

The Starly flew as high as possible, and with all the power of his fall he threw himself at the Purugly, wings glowing white. The cat Pokemon prepared himself for an attack, but just before he jumped Bertha started running towards him, turning his body into a fur ball and rolling with enormous strength at him. The impact distracted him long enough for Steven to fall on top of him, pushing him back a few feet and throwing him off balance.

Inyssa thought he was down, but the moment he fell his body sprang right back into action, now moving as if his laziness didn't exist before. His eyes were now bright red, and his expression shifted into one of bloodlust. With a mighty roar he jumped right back at his opponents with a flurry of slashes that caught both Pokemon off guard. Inyssa heard their screeches as their bodies hit the floor near her, both Pokemon having deep wounds on different parts of their bodies. Bertha was still conscious and trying to stand up with much difficulty, while Steven was breathing heavily, unable to move.

Her mouth was dry as she watched her only hope being defeated so easily. Mars formed a sly smile and tried to contain a chuckle.

"I..." she didn't want to say those words, but she wasn't going to put her Pokemon in any more danger. "I give u-"

A barely audible growl interrupted her, coming from Bertha. She'd managed to stand up, and her eyes were brimming with determination, her gaze set on the Purugly.

"You can't fight anymore," Inyssa reminded her. "It's okay, we'll find another way to..."

It happened before she had a chance to stop it. Bertha started running once more towards her opponent, her body turning into a rolling ball, this time with twice the strength of her previous attack. Inyssa didn't get a chance to let a word out, she simply searched desperately for Bertha's Pokeball in her pocket, but it was already too late.

"Faint Attack," Mars' voice reached her ears, and the Purugly in front of her formed a wicked smile on his face.

Bertha's body, now covered in blood, accelerated with incredible speed towards the cat Pokemon, as he once more jumped into action, sharp claws brimming with light. The impact destroyed the near safety rails and the dust forced Inyssa to close her eyes. When it finally settled she could see two bodies on the floor, immobile. The Purugly laid unconscious in front of her master, growling in pain, and in front of him...

Inyssa's heart stopped. Bertha's body was motionless, every part of her covered in red. Her chest didn't move; she wasn't breathing.

She fell to her knees, eyes wide open and limbs frozen. A few feet from her, Mars returned the Purugly to his Pokeball..

"What a shame, having to take a Pokemon's life..." her voice was now slow and contemplating, eyes still set on Inyssa. "I assure you that was not my plan, I'd hoped you would have better control over your Pokemon..."

Inyssa's body moved on its own. While on her knees she grabbed a piece of broken glass that was near her, and before she knew it she began running towards Mars, a weapon in her hands and the sound of the distant wind deafening her scream. She expected the woman to dodge or to call upon another Pokemon, but she didn't move. Inyssa was merely inches from her; she punched the air with the piece of broken glass, aiming directly at her face.

There was a flash of movement, and then an indescribable pain flared throughout her body. Inyssa glanced down, noticing the distinct shape of Mars' left fist buried in her gut. Air escaped her lungs and before she knew it she was on the ground again, face against the cold, ceramic floor. Mars' voice rang above her.

"What an interesting girl you are," she said, laughter in her voice. "You... remind me of someone. As a sign of my gratitude for helping me kill time, I'll return this to you."

Inyssa's belt fell next to her face, full of her unopened Pokeballs.

"I'll be taking my leave now, but I do hope that we'll meet again." For once she could feel a speck of honesty in Mars' voice. "Until next time."

She tried to raise her head, her blurry sight only catching a glimpse of the woman's body as she turned around and left through the door. Her vision began to darken as her body became more unresponsive. In the distance Inyssa heard a familiar voice, Barry's voice, coming from behind her. She tried to respond, tried to say something, but she couldn't even open her mouth.

She finally closed her eyes, her last sight that of Mars' back, and fell into unconsciousness.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the chapter I really wanted to get to. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.


	11. A Light Meeting

The nurse was kind enough to let Inyssa bury her Pokemon, which she appreciated.

A sharp pain hit her arm as she drove the shovel into the ground, the metal handle feeling cold against the bandages on her right hand. She took a deep breath, tasting the cold air and sent the shovel down again with enough force to send dirt flying everywhere, covering her boots in mud.

If anything it was a good way to express her anger, she thought as she kept digging. Barry was next to her doing the same thing, head down and eyes missing their usual brightness. Behind her the nurse was still asking if she needed any help, and when she replied that she didn't the woman started talking again about how sometimes these things happened, how it wasn't her fault, and if she needed anyone to talk to...

But Inyssa stopped listening at that point. The only relief she could find now was the surge of pain every time she drove the shovel down. It gave her an excuse not to talk, an excuse to ignore everyone's inquisitive eyes and their questions, so many questions. She'd been the only person in the Windworks who wasn't a Galactic grunt, besides Katie's father who was at the time tied up in the basement, and as such the police relied on her to tell them what had happened. She'd already told the story once to them, by obligation, and she was not going to do it again to the rest of the kids in the Pokemon Center just because they were curious.

One of them even told her that she was really cool for trying to fight a criminal organization alone; if Barry hadn't stopped her that kid's nose would've been broken right there.

She raised her eyes to him, but his friend wasn't looking her way, only worrying about the hole he was digging. He hadn't said anything since they started, or more specifically since she told the story when he was near; he simply put a hand on her shoulder and accompanied her to one of the flower fields outside the city, shovel in hand.

Inyssa figured he'd heard everything he needed, just her leaving him alone again and going off to do something dangerous. She could see he wanted to tell her something about it but the opportunity wasn't right; if he scolded her for abandoning him right after she lost her Pokemon he would look like a jerk. He was probably waiting until things blew over, bottling up his anger.

The thought made her even madder, sending heat to her arms and making her use even more force on her digging. So what if she didn't come for him for help? The opportunity just wasn't right, and she needed to hurry; she didn't know that Katie's father wasn't in mortal danger. It's what had to be done; it's what any respected trainer would've done.

It's what her sister would've done.

Her hands stopped, leaving the shovel inches from the ground. The thought killed all her strength and she suddenly felt cold and sore.

She'd never thought about it like that. Was that why... was that the reason Shadi disappeared? Did she go too far trying to do things alone? Maybe she'd underestimated her enemies just like Inyssa did, except she wasn't lucky enough to survive it. Her eyes went to Barry once more. Was that what he thought of her? He probably saw her as just another Shadi, just another reckless trainer who was going to get herself killed because she never asked for help.

She bit her lip, furious. If that's what he thought then she didn't need him around. She didn't need anyone; one did not become Champion by asking others for help. And if that thinking lead her to her death... well, it was what everyone expected from her anyways, and it would be what she deserved.

She opened her mouth slightly, wanting to say something to Barry, something hurtful for what he surely was thinking about, but his voice interrupted her before she had the chance to speak.

"I'm sorry," His words came out faded, barely above a whisper. "I should've been with you."

His words caught her off guard, replacing the anger she felt with a numb feeling of confusion. She looked at him for a couple seconds, not sure what to think, and then just looked down and started digging again.

"What are you talking about? It wasn't your fault," she replied. "I screwed up so don't blame yourself for it."

She could see his friend's shoulders drop, and the expression she mistook for anger now looked more like guilt.

He stopped digging for a second, letting out a small sigh. "We're supposed to be like... like the two best trainers, you know? Always together, always saving each other's butts. But I'm never there for you. I'm never there to help you."

Inyssa stared at him dumbfounded. Was he... blaming himself for what happened in the Windworks? That didn't make any sense, there was no way he could've done anything, it had all been her fault. His thinking was so illogical that she wanted to walk to him and smack him in the back of the head for being such an idiot. She narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to say something, to say that she didn't need his help, but...

"I... I'll make sure to call you next time," she said. "It's not your fault, Barry. I underestimated those Galactic grunts. It will not happen again."

"You're darn right it won't!" For the first time in hours Barry drew a smile at her, and for a moment Inyssa's pain seemed to disappear. "Because next time we'll beat them right back to outer space or wherever they got those uniforms from."

"If you say so..." Inyssa shrugged, cleaning her eyes with her sleeves.

And with a final, painful push into the dirt she finished the hole they'd been working on. Inyssa threw the shovel to the ground and stood still for several seconds, her breathing ragged. It was around three feet deep and twice as wide as Bertha was, so she figured it'd be good enough. With slow step she turned around and approached the small bundle of white that was between the flower beds, looking so out of place amidst such vibrant colors. She grabbed the sheet-covered corpse of Bertha and without saying anything she deposited her in the hole.

Barry started pouring dirt on top of Bertha, while Inyssa simply stared with unfocused and foggy eyes. Only using her left arm she put her hand around one of the daisies that flooded the place and pulled it from the roots, only to clumsily place it on top of the finished grave. For some reason she couldn't quite put it in the center, her arm was shaking too much.

Barry's fingers fell on top of hers, and with his help she was able to plant it.

She heard the nurse's steps getting closer, and a soft hand patted her on the shoulder.

"The flowers change here every year. Soon a new field of color will bloom on top of this grave," she said. "I'm sure she will be happy resting here."

"Eh, it'll do I guess." Inyssa shrugged, perhaps too strongly. "Could be better. If it were me I'd want a whole party around my funeral; some marble statues of me, maybe a couple flying jets doing pirouettes around my grave... you know, go out with some style."

Laughter sprouted from her, wild and sharp and just a little bit unhinged. The nurse shifted her gaze from her to the boy, unsure if that was a joke or not. It didn't last long however, and soon she felt her smile drop dead as the silence grew around her once more.

She stood there, waiting, expecting someone to say something. Should she say something? She remembered a lot of people giving eulogies for her father when she was young, but she was never good at talking about others. She simply put a hand over the cold dirt and lowered her head, trying to cover the wetness in her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she spoke between sobs, eyes closed and wind roaring in her ears. "You deserved better than this."

 

* * *

 

 

Two days passed before the nurse saw her fit enough to leave the Pokemon Center; not that she wouldn't have escaped again if she had any way to get to Eterna City, but as it was she decided to play the good little trainer act and for once did what she was told. She used that time to train her Pokemon, challenging any and all trainers she was able to find. She would not be underprepared for a fight again.

The only one of her Pokemon who didn't seem thrilled with the idea was Steven, who simply flew around town, occasionally coming to the Pokemon Center to eat and cuddle around her, not having any desire to fight. She didn't blame him, especially after what he'd seen in the Windworks. He deserved a rest.

She slid back on the sofa she was sitting in and took a sip of the cup in her hands, considering her options for the day. There was still no news about the Route 206 incident, and if she had to wait another day she could probably go challenge the Floaroma trainer school. She heard steps behind her and soon enough Barry sat alongside her, a cup of hot chocolate on one hand and a raisin covered cookie on the other.

"Do you know who ate all the donuts?" he asked, a defeated look on his face.

"No, do you know if leptons are compound particles?" she replied, her cheek resting on her hand.

"Is that a reference to something? I swear, you probably don't know half of the smarty pants words you always use," he took a big chunk of the cookie with a single bite. "So, what are we doing today?"

She opened her mouth to speak but Barry interrupted her by raising a finger at her.

"And before you say it, no more training," he knit his eyebrows. "Everything hurts from yesterday and I'm not the one who was in the infirmary."

"I can manage by myself if you wanna sit this one out," she shrugged. "I'm perfectly fine, thank you."

"A previously dislocated arm, two deep cuts on your hand, a swollen cheek and a lot of bruises..." Barry listed with his fingers like it was a grocery list. "Come on Niss, take it easy, if you keep at it I'm gonna have to pick you up with a wheelbarrow next time."

"I didn't think you'd have the attention span to remember all that."

"Wow, rude," he wrinkled his nose, pretending to be offended by her comment. "Seriously though, I have a great idea for today. Take a look at this!"

He bit the rest of the cookie and started rummaging through his pockets, finally finding what appeared to be a small poster that was curled into a ball. Inyssa deposited the cup on the table in front of her and opened up the piece of paper, revealing some artwork representing a small blue robot with a blaster gun on his right hand. On the top of the poster, with giant red and yellow letters it read  _Punkman: Super number 8_.

"See? The new Punkman game is coming out today!" Barry extended both arms as if trying to showcase how amazing the poster was. "They're letting kids try it in the Game Corner of the city, and if we get lucky we could get the Poketch version!

"That... does actually sound really good. I've been waiting for this one for a long time," she admitted, eyebrows perched up. "I just hope after so many release delays the game will still be good."

"I'm sure it'll be awesome, I mean the main developer is still working on it," he pointed at the man's name on the poster, as if she couldn't read it herself. "So that's it then! We'll go to the Game Corner to play videogames and we won't worry about anything else today. Sounds like a plan to me!"

She sighed, trying to hide her excitement. "Fine, but remember: videogames won't save you next time."

"Great! Just let me get my backpack and we'll be off," Barry jumped out of the sofa like a spring and started heading towards his room.

Inyssa finished what was left of her chocolate milk and simply let herself lean against the pillow behind her, eyes closing slowly. Her body was stiff, and getting to the Game Corner was going to be hell, although not as much as training her Pokemon all day again. Still, she refused to stay there doing nothing like half the trainers around; comfort wouldn't get her anywhere. She opened her eyes again and lazily got up from her seat, leaning on her left arm with difficulty. She breathed deeply and stretched her extremities, her entire body protesting. Absentmindedly she moved her sight towards the outside of the building, and her eyes opened up wide.

A flash of pink disappeared from one of the nearby buildings, so fast that she could only make up that color with a side glance. She froze, eyes still set on the corner she saw that colorful flash from, and she felt a need to go out and investigate for herself. There was no way, she thought, she probably just saw someone else by mistake and...

Before she could move she noticed another two figures approaching the Pokemon Center that she hadn't paid attention to before. She felt a shiver on her spine at the sight of a tall, finely dressed man with long brown hair and beard, his young daughter next to him. Katie and her father were coming right towards her. Panic hit her like a truck as she began clumsily looking around to pick up everything that belonged to her and putting it on her backpack at record speed. She looked everywhere around for Barry, and when she finally found him walking down the stairs she ran towards him and tried to hide behind him, attracting some side glances from the other kids around.

"Hey- whoah, what's going on!?"

"It's... it's the girl! It's the girl I saved and her father, they're looking for me!" she stuttered, grabbing onto the back of her friends' shirt. "Dammit Barry, you're too skinny for me to hide behind! If you're gonna eat so much then at least gain some weight for Mew's sake!"

"There are walls around you know," he replied, still thoroughly confused. "And why are you hiding from them? They're probably here to thank you for what you did."

She stomped the ground, "That's the problem! I... I don't want to deal with that, it's gonna be stressful and sad and I don't want anything to do with it."

"Well what are we supposed to do? They're coming from the front door," Barry pointed. "And I don't think there's a secret back door around, like the one in the school's cafeteria we used all the time."

"I... well..." she bit her lip. "I know! There's a window in your room, right?"

Barry tilted his head to the side, eyes narrowed, "Niss, my room is on the second floor. I don't think that's gonna fly, nor us for that matter."

She grabbed him by the arm and started dragging him towards the stairs with an air of desperation.

"Come on, I can handle it!"

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa could not handle it, as it turned out. An ill-advised fall, some quite colorful insults and a couple minutes later both kids were walking through the busy streets of Floaroma, the pained girl leaning with one arm against Barry.

"Next time leave the crazy ideas for me," he warned her, a sly smile on his face. "That was a good one, lots of potential, but it lacked a bit of polish."

"I'm gonna break  _your_  leg if you don't stop talking," she grumbled while limping alongside him. "I... didn't have much time to think, okay? I had to go with the first thing that came to mind."

She could see Barry still smiling, but for some reason he felt more jumpy than usual. Maybe it was because she was leaning against him but she thought he was looking around way too often. Right after she said that she caught him looking behind them, eyes narrowed.

"Yeah, about that. I still don't get why we ran away," he said. "I thought you liked being praised by people."

"That's... not true. Stop making things up." She grit her teeth, her face flushed. "I didn't want to make things awkward. They probably wanted to thank me even though I didn't do anything; I didn't want to deal with that."

"Nothing? You saved that little girl! And who knows what that psychopath would've done to her dad if you didn't buy so much time?"

"They would've been fine," Inyssa assured him. "If I didn't interfere Katie and her dad would've been released after Team Galactic finished their job, and I would still have Bertha." There was a lot of bitterness attached to her tone. "And that guy, Dione, wouldn't have lost his eye if it wasn't for me."

Barry let out a strong chuckle that made her jump a bit; he looked at her as if he didn't believe her words, "Are you seriously feeling sorry for that jerk? He deserved to get both eyes taken out!"

Inyssa raised an eyebrow, unaccustomed to such an angry expression crossing her friend's face.

"You okay?" She asked in a soft tone. "That didn't sound like you at all."

"Huh? Oh, yeah...." his cheeks turned red. "Yeah... I'm just still mad about what happened. Don't worry about it."

They kept walking, every minute getting farther from the main street and the Pokemon Center. According to the map the Game Corner was placed somewhere in the north-east of town, where all the entertainment businesses were located. With some luck they could get there before mid day, and maybe after Barry and her could get something to eat in a nearby restaurant. The possibility was still dancing in her head when she noticed something strange; Barry was consistently poking her in the back in a rhythm that seemed... deliberate, almost. She looked at him expecting to see him smiling but she only found a grim expression on his face, eyes narrowed and teeth clenched. The boy met her gaze and glanced backwards.

Inyssa turned her head, completely oblivious, "Huh? Is there someone behind us?"

Barry couldn't help but sigh.

"Oh for Pete's sake!" He turned around quickly and took a Pokeball out of his belt. "You were supposed to be subtle about it! Come on Niss, you're usually smarter than that."

Before she could reply the boy threw his Pokeball into the air, towards a nearby hallway at their left. From its light appeared a tall, oval figure with two long arms and a small yellow beak. The Prinplup materialized and immediately looked through the passage, where Inyssa's eyes couldn't reach.

"We know you're there!" Barry yelled, attempting to sound intimidating. "Show yourself now before my Pokemon drags you out!"

Inyssa was completely lost, eyes wide open staring between her friend and the apparently empty hallway. But her confusion was cleared when she felt steps coming from the other side, approaching them. Her stomach turned when someone walked out, both hands behind her head. The girl's pink hair was covering part of her face, and she was wearing the same shirt Inyssa saw her in a couple days ago.

"It's you!" Inyssa pointed at her, eyes wide open, until she realized how inane a statement that was. "What are you doing here?"

"You didn't notice her following us?" Barry shook his head at her, "I've been trying to warn you since we left the Pokemon Center."

"By doing what, poking me in the back?" She protested, shaking her nose dismissively at him. "Besides, you have much better hearing than I do."

"That was morse code! You're telling me you don't know morse code?"

"D... do you?"

"Yeah, my mom taught me when I was little," he explained as if it were the most normal thing in the world. "I thought everyone knew it!"

"Um... excuse me?"

They both turned around towards the strange girl who was now staring at them, her expression a mix of confusion and amusement. Inyssa followed Barry's example and grabbed Enma's Pokeball.

"Why were you following us?"

"Yeah! And you better not try anything funny," Barry warned her, shaking his finger at her. "We're not on the mood for any surprises, right Pedri?"

The tall penguin Pokemon put one of his sharp fins close to the woman's face, eyes focused entirely on her.

"Whoa whoa, calm down!" She was completely still, a drop of sweat running down her face. "I don't wanna start anything, I swear! I just wanna to talk to you."

"Then why didn't you talk to us when we were in the Pokemon Center?" Inyssa asked, pointing Enma's Pokeball at her face.

She gulped and took a step back, "I... didn't want anyone to see me. I'm keeping a low profile for now."

"That doesn't really makes us trust you more you know," Barry said. "You could've come up with something better."

"I... I'm telling the truth," she shrugged, "I just wanna talk to you... um..." she bit her lips, looking contemplative.

"Inyssa," she clarified, "and fine, suppose we don't see you as a creep, which we do, what do you want to talk to us about?"

The strange girl lowered her hands as slowly as possible while she tried to think of what to say. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips pale.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Metchi," she waved with one hand. "And... I wanted to ask you about what happened in the Windworks, if it's not a bother."

Barry narrowed her eyes and looked at Inyssa, waiting for her response.

"Well I'm sorry to disappoint you but it is a bother," she replied bitterly. "Go ask the police if you want a story, I'm not in the mood to entertain anyone."

And with that she put Enma's Pokeball back in her belt and turned around.

"No, wait, wait!" Metchi tried to walk forward but suddenly remembered the knife sharp fin pointed right at her. "Please... I can't go to the police, I can't talk to anyone else about this. I just wanna ask you a couple questions, I swear."

"Why do you need to know that so much?" Barry asked, incredulous. "Are you a paparazzi or something?"

"What? No..." she raised her eyebrows at him, only now realizing that she was talking with kids much younger than her. "I can't tell you why but I promise it's important."

"Listen, you can't just follow us around and expect us to tell you things after that," Inyssa told her, irritated tone. "Why should we trust you? For all we know you could be one of those Galactic idiots."

Metchi's eyebrows joined together as a venomous expression made hit Inyssa with so much force she almost had to take a step back.

"I'm not one of them!" she yelled, ears turning red. Pedri was about to put his fin even closer to her face when she spoke again. "L...look, if you tell me I can give you some useful information. You're trainers right? And you wanna challenge the Gym leaders?"

Barry and Inyssa exchanged a careful look.

"Yeah, so?" the boy asked. "Do you know where to find rare Pokemon?"

"Even better." For the first time Metchi formed a small, nervous smile. "You guys are stranded here until the bridge in Route 206 is repaired, right? Well, I know another way straight to Eterna City."

They glanced at each other, lips pursed. After a moment of consideration Inyssa replied:

"We're listening."

Metchi nodded, "Do you know where Eterna Forest is? You have to go through Route 205 to reach it; once you're there you'll have to walk all the way through until you find a big, fancy mansion," she started explaining, clearly having trouble remembering the path. "It's abandoned, but in one of the back rooms there's a secret passage that leads to a hidden grotto in the forest, and if you follow the path you'll appear east of Eterna City."

Inyssa raised her Pokétch and started fiddling with it, opening the map and carefully looking through it. Just like Matchi had described, there appeared to be a big, abandoned building in the skims of Eterna Forest.

"Wow, it's actually there," Barry said, pleasantly surprised. "How do you know about that? Is it haunted?"

"It was my hideout; and that's how I got to Eterna City before... I had to come here," she admitted, her lips forming a sad smile. "And uh... I don't think it's haunted, as far as I know anyway."

Inyssa clicked her tongue, eyeing up the strange woman, trying to determine if she was to be trusted. On one hand she did seem to be trying to appear as unintimidating as possible, but that might as well be a trap to lead them somewhere, the middle of a dark forest to be more specific. But then again, if she was saying the truth she pretty much had no chance; she had to get to Eterna City as soon as possible.

"Fine, I believe you," she spoke, even before she made her mind about the subject. "What do you want to know?"

Metchi smiled so wide Inyssa almost started laughing, though she managed to contain herself. She lead both of them to a nearby hallway and asked for the story where no one else could hear them. Inyssa thought that reliving what happened again would've been even more painful, but as words started flowing she noticed the pain in her chest more dull than before, which she couldn't decide if it was relieving or disheartening. It took her almost ten minutes to summarize it, and when she finally finished the story she could feel her eyes getting watery again, which Metchi mercifully ignored.

"I can't believe they let Mars lead a mission like that," Metchi whispered to herself. "Out of the four commanders you could've encountered... I'm sorry kid, but you had shit luck that day."

"Yeah, you can say that again," Inyssa crossed her arms and sighed.

"How do you know those guys anyway?" Barry asked.

"Sorry, but I can't say anything about that," she put both hands in the air as a sign of apology. "Trust me, if I start running my mouth it'll be dangerous for all of us."

Inyssa grabbed her by the arm just before she turned around to leave, "Well, since you insist on being a mysterious jerk, do you mind if I ask you another couple questions?"

Metchi smiled nervously. "I have a feeling I'm gonna regret this. But yeah sure, shoot."

"Were you the one who blew up the bridge in Route 206?"

The question caught her by surprise. Metchi opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't find the right words. She looked away from Inyssa, and finally after a few seconds she answered.

"So you were the brats on that Salamance," she laughed weakly. "Well, no, that wasn't me, though I was around when it happened."

Inyssa could feel that there was more to the story, but she decided not to press her luck; something told her the girl was telling the truth, if only partially.

"Sounds like it was quite the adventure," she commented, thinking about what to say next. "And my other question is... who were you talking to when I found you a couple days ago?"

Metchi froze, and Inyssa could see that she caught her by surprise even more than with her previous question. The girl looked down and her breathing became more heavy as her thoughts raced. Whatever the truth was, it seemed to be something that she really didn't want anyone to know. Even more incentive to find out about it, Inyssa thought.

"That was... shit, I can't make anything up." She bit her finger. "Look just... I was talking to an... associate," she pronounced the last word slowly. "I can't say anything else, sorry."

Inyssa sighed, somewhat disappointed. The exchange of information hadn't been as fruitful as she expected.

"I have to go now," Metchi said after a few seconds. "I don't wanna say more than I should, and I shouldn't stay in the same place for so long anyway. Now that you told me all that..." she gave Inyssa a small bump on the arm. "I can actually plan a course of action. Thank you."

And with that she took a Pokeball out her rugged belt, which appeared to be the only one she had. She opened it with ease and from the emanated light emerged a robust, brown Pokemon with an extremely long neck and four green wings growing from his back in an X shape. The Tropius landed on the floor and immediately let out a deep yawn, lazily studying the two unknown trainers next to her.

"Whoa, what the heck is that!" Barry yelled in excitement at the sight of the strange Pokemon. "It's super cool!"

"Oh, you mean this gal?" Metchi approached her Pokemon and gave her a pat on the neck. "Her name's Lyserg. She's lazier than a Slaking, but she's useful to get around."

Inyssa couldn't help but appreciate the beautiful Pokemon, which had clearly been taken care of with expertise, at least much more than she thought possible with someone like Metchi. The green in her body was vibrant and her wings were long and robust.

"It has bananas on her neck!" Barry pointed at them, stating the obvious. "Can you eat them?"

"I'm... not sure actually," Metchi looked at her Pokemon contemplatively. "They usually fall off every other week, but I've never tried eating one since it seemed... weird. But I can save you one for next time, if you want," she gave Barry a warm smile.

"That would be amazing," the boy nodded.

Metchi gave him a pat on the shoulder and approached her Pokemon, jumping on her back without too much difficulty and putting her arms around her neck. The flying grass dinosaur began flapping her wings, and a powerful winds soon filled the street.

"Wait!" Inyssa didn't know why she tried to stop her, but luckily Metchi heard her and looked down at the young trainer. "Hey... I have another question."

"Another one?" Metchi asked, raising an eyebrow. "Fine, sure. Try not to make it anything personal this time."

Inyssa held her question for a few seconds, wondering herself it she should ask it. Barry was looking at her expectantly, and she felt like it wasn't the right time to be thinking about that. And yet...

"By any chance do you know someone called... Shadi?" She spoke slowly, almost in whispers as she avoided Barry's eyes. "Shadi Dawn. Sort of looked like me, a bit taller, longer hair and angular face..."

Heat rose to her face as she waited for an answer. She could feel Barry's eyes staring at the back of her head, but she didn't care. Even if the possibility was almost nonexistent...

"I'm sorry," Metchi replied. "I don't think I know anyone like that."

Inyssa's shoulders dropped. "That's... okay. Have a nice travel."

"Yeah... same to you guys," she nodded, and then looked straight ahead. "I hope we'll meet again. Until then!"

Dust exploded all around them as the Tropius took flight. When it finally cleared Inyssa looked up, only barely able to see the shape of the flying Pokemon as it soared through the sky towards the west, disappearing in the distance.


	12. House of Ashes

Finding the forest turned out to be quite easy. Getting through it, on the other hand, looked like it was going to be a challenge.

Inyssa and Barry's shoulders were practically glued as they walked, eyes peeled for any enemies that might appear. In front of them Enma walked proudly, fingers closed in a fist and hoping for a fight, while Pedri stood behind them carefully watching their backs as they advanced through the thick flora. Above them two other Pokemon cast shadows on the poorly illuminated ground; both Steven and Paulette had been sent by their trainers to keep an eye on their surroundings.

"Maybe we should've taken another path," Barry said through ragged breath. "This place is insane, how many Pokemon were those?"

Inyssa felt the need to scold him, though she couldn't deny that they were in rough shape. As soon as they set foot on the forest the rate of aggressive Pokemon increased tenfold. Before they knew it they were fighting an all out battle from every front as a bunch of Ghastly, Misdrevous, Dustox and Beautifly appeared from behind the shadows of the trees around them. The thickness of the oaks surrounding their path did a good job of blocking the sunlight and making the Pokemon of the forest harder to see.

"There is no other path. As far as we know the bridge is still blown up," she said. "Besides, this will be good battle experience. Sure, it's been more... intense than we planned, but we can manage." She looked at her starter, whose flame was still burning brightly. "We'll get through it, no problem."

"Yeah, but I don't even know where we are. It's all darn green and black as far as I can see!" He unconsciously grabbed Inyssa's hand. "What if we're lost?"

She lazily raised her arm to his face, showing him the Pokétch, "Dude... there's a GPS on this thing. We're not lost, in fact we're almost the..."

A shadow jumped from the trees above and raced towards Inyssa, only the shimmer of white fangs visible. She barely had time to blink before the Pokemon was on top of her, the only reaction she could muster being a quick gasp. She felt her body being violently thrown to the side as Pedri intercepted the attack for her, his tough skin proving almost impervious to the Gastly's bite. The penguin Pokemon shot the ghost a furious glare as he sent him upwards with a strong swing. Moments after Inyssa could see Enma's ember flying through the air as it scorched his enemy, forcing it to retreat. The fire Pokemon let out a short, mocking laugh as he turned around with arms behind his head, satisfied with the result.

Inyssa put a hand on the ground and forced herself up, heart pounding in her chest.

"See? That's what I'm talking about!" Barry hurried over to her. "I don't get it, they're not attacking our Pokemon, they're attacking us!"

"I don't get it either." She cleaned the dust off her coat and straightened her hat. "But it doesn't matter, we're here already."

From between two fat, old oaks they could make up what appeared to be a dusty, worn cement path that lead to a gratuitously enormous house. The forest had taken hold of the place, and what in other time was probably a beautiful chateau was now covered in green and brown as roots overrun everything. All the front windows were broken, pieces of glass adorning the floor around the main entrance, and from their angle they could see that parts of the roof had collapsed, giving the impression that whatever happened to the place wasn't just due to nature.

"This is where Metchi said she lived?" Barry asked, incredulous. "Looks like it's gonna fall on itself any second now."

She felt the eyes on her disappearing one by one as they approached the entrance; she wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but it was a relief either way. They finally reached the door, and both kids simply stood there, silently contemplating it. It was twice as tall as them and made of some kind of dark wood that somehow didn't  rot compared to the rest of it. Inyssa slowly raised one arm to the doorknob, but she stopped before grabbing it, her hand shaking for some reason. She felt a knot on her throat, and when she turned to look at Barry she found him pale.

"Yeah I'm not feeling it," he confessed. "Let's turn around Niss, this is a bad idea."

"What's gotten into you? You're usually braver than this," she chastised him, an eyebrow raised. "There's nothing bad h..." she wanted to finish the sentence but something told her she shouldn't. "Well, if there  _is_  something here we'll take care of it."

"...Fine." He swallowed, and with a movement of his hand he returned both Petri and Paulette to their Pokeballs. "But just for the record, bravery is not the same thing as stupidity."

"Now that's something I didn't expect to hear from you," she smiled lightly as she also returned both her Pokemon. "Not the same thing? I don't believe that for a second."

And with that she grabbed the doorknob with fierce determination and opened the doors, plunging into the darkness of the abandoned Chateau.

The smell hit her like a punch to the nose. An almost metallic, noxious stench that made her eyes water just from contact with it. Inyssa looked down and noticed the wooden floor giving in beneath her feet, revealing the moldy cement under it; but it wasn't just rotten wood, there was something else, something much more potent. She couldn't quite make it out but it felt like something... electric, like burnt cables.

"Motherf... what is this?" She put both hands on her nose, her eyes opening and closing quickly due to the smell. "My nose feels like it's burning!"

Barry raised an eyebrow at her, "It's not that bad. Kinda smells like grandma's house."

"Remind me never to go to your grandma's," she whispered as she raised her scarf to her nose. "Let's go, the hidden exit should be in one of the rooms in the back."

The room laid in front of them was quite impressive, or it would've been if the place weren't so run down. In front of the doormat at their feet began a thick, expensive looking purple carpet that extended to the other side of the room, where a tall, broken door opened to another room covered in darkness. At both sides of such door extended two robust mahogany staircases, their steps being luckily made out of marble instead of the broken wood that was crumbling beneath their feet. Many of the rails had fallen off and were now adorning the floor like teeth fallen out of the mouth that was the upper floor. They could barely see another broken door up there.

With caution they proceeded forward, dust dancing around their feet as their steps unearthed the true floor under the decaying, rotten wood. Inyssa had a steady hand on her belt, eyes darting on every direction like they were trying to uncover something that she couldn't quite see; but everything was still and dead, almost unnaturally so. She closed her hands perhaps too strongly, and her breathing became a bit more shallow, though she didn't notice it herself.

She was still entranced by that smell; the absolute breadth of it, how it pulled her mind every direction but forward, the way its strength took her out of her thoughts. She felt that burnt stench sensation inside her, like she was breathing cold fire. But where was it coming from? Unlike the rot and blight that plagued the wood floors and steps it felt like it was in the air itself, inside it and all around her, impossible to escape. It clung to her body like cold, like a long, silent autumn night. Nothing but death and stillness and extinguished fires devouring the air...

Her walking suddenly came to a halt when she felt Barry's arm stopping her, the sudden jerking taking her out of those thoughts. Mind hazy, she blinked a couple times and looked in front of her, noticing that they were already at the door at the other side of the room. How long had she been walking? That door couldn't have been more than a few feet away, but somehow it felt like an eternity. When she gave Barry a side glance she could see a worried expression pasted on his face.

"You almost walked into the wall," he smiled, though his eyes did not reflect that. "And you're kinda pale. What's wrong?"

She swallowed, her lower lip trembling. What had happened? It felt like a momentary time lapse, like time getting too stretched around herself, to the point where a knife could cut it clean and violently shake her mind awake.

"Nothing. I don't know." she put a hand on her face and sighed deeply. "The smell is messing with my head."

"It's really not that bad," he commented, sniffing around as if trying to find what was bothering her. "Are you sure you're okay? We can go back."

"No, I'm fine." She stood up straight and raised her head high. "We're here already, let's just find the hidden exit."

Without waiting for his response she set foot inside the room, pushing away half broken door, which collapsed the second she put her hand on it. The wood fell into the floor, breaking into a hundred pieces, and the rusty copper hinges dissolved into thick dust. She did her best to ignore it and walked forward, the gloomy entrance opening to an enormous room, easily twice the size of the previous one. In front of her she could see a long, once majestic mahogany table sitting in the middle of the room. Roots grew up from the ground under it, circling the feet of it and making it look like they were trying to drag it underground; a wide ray of sunlight came from a hole in the roof, illuminating the center and giving it the look of an antique, ominous painting.

She approached the table with cautious curiosity and studied it from up close, strangely fixated by it. All the plates and cutlery were sitting still where they belonged, twisted into rusty pieces of metal and moldy ceramic. But just where the main dish was supposed to be there was now an empty spot, marked by all the dust around it; someone must have taken part of it recently. Something inside her sparked, and for a moment she felt furious that someone would disturb such a beautiful table; but the moment passed and she was left confused, what was she thinking about? It was just a table, who cared? She shook her head lightly and took her eyes away from it.

There appeared to be another smaller room at her right, possibly leading to some kind of kitchen. In front of her the walls were adorned with paintings of varying sizes, all of which were too affected by time to make anything of them. Somehow the windows of the room had survived, though they were so foggy and dirty that not even a speck of light could come through.

"I don't think this is the place," she sighed. "We'll have to explore the upper floors, let's just hope it doesn't collapse on..."

She turned around to talk to Barry, the haze of the previous room already clearing from her head, when her heart jumped. Her friend wasn't there.

She felt the air in her lungs escaping her, and for a second she thought she would suffocate. But she took another breath and violently looked around, trying to find any trace of Barry, to no avail. Her body jumped like it was woken up by a jolt of electricty, and she ran towards the exit of the room, her heart pounding in her chest. But just when she was about to get out she clashed against something hard and cold. She slowly opened her eyes and she could almost swear she felt her veins turn to ice.

The exit wasn't there anymore. Where before there was that hole that used to be a door now was a black, colorless wall, its darkness as thick as the silence surrounding her. Unwillingly she extended a hand to it and touched it, and the cold that she felt was almost painful. Breathing heavily she took a step backward, her entire body trembling. She reached for her belt, like she had done in the past when faced with something dangerous, and she almost had a heart attack when she didn't feel anything there. Her Pokeballs had disappeared.

"Wha... huh?" her brain was having trouble keeping up with what was happening around her. "What the... where are they!?"

She backed into the table, almost toppling it over and sending a couple plates flying into the ground, the smashing sound bringing her back to reality. Desperate she looked towards where the windows used to be, but similarly to the door now all the other walls of the room were black slates. Her hands grabbed the edges of the table with enough force to almost break it, and she felt a cold sweat cling to her body.

She closed her eyes for a few seconds, taking quick erratic breaths, but when she opened them the sight didn't change a bit, in fact... were the walls getting closer? The thought made her skin crawl and forced her body to move, running to one of the walls and slamming her body against it.

"Barry!" Her scream was guttural, coming from the deepest part of her. "Barry! Can you hear me!? Hey!"

She kept screaming but for some reason it felt like she wasn't. She couldn't feel the air vibrating around her, almost like the silence was swallowing her words the moment they came out of her mouth. It was closing around her, turning her body colder and invading her mind and eyes, darkness consuming everything in its path. Her body curled and she began to feel dizzy from her ragged breathing. This had to be a dream, she thought. This couldn't be happening, it made absolutely no sense. The smell, the darkness, the cold, it was all too surreal, almost like...

She opened her eyes wide, and for a second she stopped shaking. Almost like something was messing with her head. Suddenly she remembered the forest, how all those Pokemon had been attacking them ever since they set foot on the place. The way they were fighting felt almost... defensive, like they were trying to guard something, to keep them away from someplace. Perhaps they knew about the Chateau and wanted to protect them from what was inside it.

She had a hunch. With one hand she looked inside her bag, quickly rummaging through all of her stuff in search of a specific item. Finally her fingers touched something cold and metallic, and she smiled for the first time since entering that place. She grabbed it and raised it over her head, the small, old iron lighter almost shining in the surrounding darkness.

"Whoever is doing this, listen to me!" she yelled, and this time her voice penetrated through the dark. "I'm not afraid of you! I'll burn this whole place down if you don't let us go! I'm not joking around!"

She flipped the lighter open with one hand, releasing a big flame which cut through the void around her like a knife through butter. She stood still, the fire on her hand keeping away the cold and reinvigorating her somewhat. She was hoping that whatever was causing this would take the bait and release them from fear of letting the house be burned down.

She waited for several seconds, each one feeling like an eternity as the shadows grew around her. She knew her father's lighter wouldn't last forever, and once the flame ran out she had a feeling she wouldn't like what would happen. Her arm was getting asleep just holding it over her head. She looked around desperately, and for a second she thought that her plan wouldn't work, and she would just collapse into the cold around her.

She closed her eyes as the flame died, and waited for it.

Then the ceiling broke down, and Barry fell in front of her.

 

* * *

 

 

For the first time in his life, running face first into a wall wasn't Barry's fault. The boy saw his friend walk into the dark room with utmost confidence, and he would've followed after her if a noise behind him hadn't distract him. He was about to lay a foot inside when he felt the air vibrating behind him, and a strange gust of wind hit him on the back of the head. He turned around, annoyed, but his eyes didn't find anything outside the ordinary. The place looked just as wrecked, and the smell of dust still filled the air. He shrugged, instantly losing interest, and went towards the door once more. Except this time he ran directly into cold stone with his face.

He recoiled, grunting in pain. The door leading to the kitchen had been replaced by a black, cold wall.

"...Huh? Where's the door?"

He searched all around but there was no entrance to where Niss had gone, the path had been completely cut off. Barry's feet started moving in place, something like electricity running through his body.

"I knew it, this place  _is_  haunted!" He screamed with a mix of pride and horror. "Wait, shoot! Niss is still there! Hey Niss! Niss are you okay!?"

He drove his body against the wall with all his strength, but all he managed to do was hurt his shoulder. He kept kicking and pushing the wall for almost a minute, desperately trying to get a response from his friend, but no sound came from the other side. He backed up, sweat running down his face and his heart beating fast.

"This isn't funny..." he whispered to himself. "What do I do? Should I use my Pokemon? But then the whole place is gonna collapse! But I have to find Niss! But also I have to..."

His ramblings were interrupted by something above him. A speck of light appeared for a moment in the upper floor, close to the staircase, which made the boy look in that direction. It disappeared as soon as he raised his sight, but that only gave him another idea.

"That's it! I can go up there and then break the floor to go to that room!" He proudly announced to no one. "That won't make the place come down on us... probably."

Without even considering another possibility he ran towards the staircase, wind on his feet. He started going up the marble steps, although he almost fell when part of the sidewalk collapsed when he tried to grab it.

"Right... everything's gone to crap here," he told himself, voice barely a whisper. "Let's try not to die while we do this."

Only slightly more carefully he walked up the steps until he found himself on the second floor, the visible part almost empty except for another big entrance identical to the one below. He kicked the wooden door without much difficulty and went in, walking through a narrow hallway that opened up to another wide room with several doors on the other extreme of it. He considered his options for about half a second, and then immediately ran towards the closer one and attempted to kick it open.

"Listen up I have a belt full of Pokeballs and a missing friend and I'm not afraid to... ah, frick!" Unlike what he expected the door held strong and didn't collapse from the kick. The wood was darker and sturdier than the other ones, and it had metal reinforcements. "Agh... never mind."

He simply tried to open it from the doorknob, and to his surprise it worked. He swallowed, grateful that his friend wasn't there to see him humiliated. With a push from his shoulder he managed to open it fully, and with grit determination he walked in, ready for a fight.

But he stopped on his tracks the moment he saw what was inside. The door opened to a small bedroom, its walls almost entirely covered in moss. The only things inside were a worn out, half broken bed and a small desk at its side. On top of it there was a mirror as big as a child.

But what surprised him most was that there was a person there. Sitting in a wooden chair in front of the desk was what appeared to be a small kid, long brown hair running down her back. She wore a blue patterned dress which was the only beautiful thing he'd seen since he'd entered the house. He looked up, trying to make up her appearance but just where her face should've been reflected the mirror was severely cracked. He stood on the edge of the room, unsure of what to do, until he heard her speak.

"Big sister, is that you?" The kid talked with a high pitched, emotionless voice. "No... you're not her. Who are you?"

The voice hit him like a powerful wind, making him take a step back. All of his senses were warning him, telling him to close the door and run away, but he couldn't. He had to find a way to get into the room Niss had disappeared in.

"I'm... Barry. I don't know who your big sister is," he talked slowly for once, carefully chosing his words. "I'm looking for my friend, Niss. Do you know where she is?"

The kid raised a hand and started fixing her hair with a brush, as if it were a daily occurrence. Barry felt a nod on his throat when he saw that her hands were as pale as paper, with a sickly blue color all around it.

"She's not like you or Big Sister," the kid said, matter of factly. "She doesn't have one of the  _lights_  or the  _New Moon_  with her. The blue eyed one will get her, and then she'll be lost."

He grabbed one of his Pokeballs from his belt and pointed it at the child, heat running through his body. "Okay, stop talking in riddles. I don't know who big sister is, and if Niss is in trouble then you have to tell me how can I get to her."

"You do know her, dummy," for the first time he could feel a speck of emotion on her voice. "Only two people ever found this place, and you know both of them."

He heard her words, and slowly started to form a mental image on his head. He remembered the whole reason they were there, he remembered the girl with the pink hair and the Tropius, and the way her warm smile convinced them to choose that path.

"Son of a..." he whispered. "She sent us here! She told us this place was safe!"

"It is safe," the girl told him. "For you, and her, and for Big Sister. But not for your friend," she stood quiet for a couple seconds, and just when Barry was about to yell something she spoke again. "If you're friends with Big Sister then I'll help you."

"Awesome! How about you help me right now?" He was getting quite impatient with the little kid. "I'm kind of in a rush here."

"Then come forward."

He did as he was told and walked towards the center of the room, the atmosphere around him growing heavier with each step. Once he was right behind her the kid raised one of her pale, corpse like arms and he could see there was something between her fingers. A worn out rope necklace with a dark, uniform rectangle stone in the middle which was about the size of his palm. Without waiting for her prompt he grabbed it, feeling a deathly cold when his fingers brushed against hers, and he took it for himself. The stone felt heavier than it looked, and even in the darkness of the room he could almost make out some kind of inscription on it.

"Take that Specter Plate and keep it safe," her voice was breaking up, literally, as if she were about to disappear. "Find your friend and get out fast, I won't be able to keep the house up for much longer."

"Wh..." he was about to ask something, but he suddenly felt the floor shake beneath his feet.

"And don't look down."

The ground split open and Barry fell to the room below, his last sight before that being of the kid's body dissolving into smoke.

 

* * *

 

 

It was a good thing the table was there, Inyssa thought, otherwise Barry could've broken his spine. The boy dropped from the ceiling like a cannon ball, and a rather loud one at that. A cloud of dust was raised from the spot he was now laying on, shards of ceramic and pieces of wood around him.

"Barry!"

Her voice came out almost like a sob. Without wasting a second she saved her father's lighter on her pocket and ran towards her friend, desperation in her voice. She kneeled in front of him, putting a hand behind his back as she helped him to his feet

"Ugh..." he grunted. "I think I died."

"Oh no the fuck you didn't," she chastised him, unable to contain her smile. "You're not gonna leave me alone here, you jerk."

Slowly the boy got on his feet, his clothes covered in dirt and his body shaking from the impact. She could see he had something on his left hand, but she couldn't quite make out what it was. The boy's eyes lacked his usual shine, and Inyssa feared that he had seen something bad while they were separated.

"There's something here, messing with us," she warned him. "I think it's a Pokemon. It hid all the windows and I can't find my Pokeballs."

Barry stood still at her comment, slowly turning his head to look at everything around the room, though Inyssa could still only see nothing but shadows.

"Niss, the windows are right there," he pointed at his left. She had no idea in relation to what, she had forgotten where anything was. "And the door is open now. Are you okay?"

"What? You don't see it?" her voice became higher pitched, and she felt her lips tremble. "Then it must be messing with my head. If you can see the exit then let's get out of here!"

She grabbed Barry's hand without waiting for a response, and the moment their fingers touched the entire place shook. Inyssa felt a slight dizziness as the room they were in changed to its previous iteration. In the blink of an eye all the shadows and black walls disappeared, and she could see clearly the exit and the windows at the other side of the room. She froze for a second, and then the pain came. It jerked her entire body like a bolt of lightning and she was forced to let go of her friend's hand. Before she knew it the shadows came back once more, swallowing everything around them and filling the air with that noxious stench.

"Niss!" Barry rushed to her side, wanting to grab her for support but too scared that he would hurt her. "What's wrong!?"

The girl stopped for a second as her sight became more and more cloudy with every moment.

"I think I have an idea," she whispered, breathing heavily. "Barry, grab my hand and don't let go, even if it hurts me."

"Wh... what are you talking about?" Barry's eyes were open wide and his voice was shaking.

She looked him in the eyes, and for a second she tought she saw a golden, familiar light on them, "Just... trust me!"

He did as he was told, and once again the moment his hand touched hers the pain came back, stronger than ever. She forced herself to bear it, and witnessed as the room changed back and forth between its normal and corrupted form, until the first one became clearer and clearer and the fog in her eyes began to dissipate. She wasn't sure if it was just a hallucination, but she noticed a dark, reddish cloud of smoke coming out of her body and rising towards the ceiling.

"Whoa what the heck is that!?" Barry's scream pierced her ears, taking her out of that haze.

When he finally let go of her hand she was relieved to see that the dinner room remained in its natural state unlike before. She put a hand on top of her belt, and she almost let out a sob of joy when she touched the cold metal of her Pokeballs.

Right above them a Pokemon materialized from nothingness, dust and air turning into a red, jolting ball of smoke. For a second she thought it might have been a Gastly, but that wasn't it. The color was wrong and the form wasn't exactly round, since he had two energy spikes coming from above and below his body. The unknown ghost Pokemon opened his blue eyes and Inyssa could smell the electricity in the air.

"That's the thing that's been causing all this," she told Barry weakly, still relying on him for support.

Barry immediately grabbed one of his Pokeballs, ready for battle, "What is it? I've never seen one of these before,"

"Me neither. But it doesn't matter," she did the same, eyebrows perched together. "We'll find out after I capture it. I'm not letting it go after what it did to me."

The air crackled with electricity. The strange ghost Pokemon vibrated quickly, his eyes darting between the two kids in front of him. Then suddenly something like a voice came out of his mouth, and though she knew it was just the sounds of sparks there seemed to be a sort of rhythm about them, like the Pokemon was trying to communicate using only electricity.

 _"...nother...ixie...ibling...hought...only one..."_  She had no idea how she could understand that grating sound, but she interpreted every sound, and from the look on Barry's face he could as well.  _"...sprit... will pay... protec... her... any cos..."_

His body shouded itself with power, the dark clouds around him transforming into electricity as he prepared an attack. Both Barry and Inyssa threw their Pokeballs at the same time. From hers emerged the familiar form of Enma, who appeared in front of the strange Pokemon with one hand on the floor, ready to fight. At his sight another flash of light materialized into a short, orange otter-like Pokemon, with what appeared to be yellow floaters on its neck. The Buizel stood still, arms crossed and eyes set on his opponent.

The air around the ghost Pokemon exploded in sparks as a deep, shaky roar came from his mouth. Almost too fast to react his body let out a wave of electricity which raced towards them.

"Razen, Protect!" Barry reacted, pulling Inyssa and himself behind the Buizel, who put both hands forward and created a green energy shield around them.

The sparking energy hit Enma directly, not doing nearly enough damage to take him down, and it simply bounced from the barrier that Razen had created. It kept going until it hit the wall behind them, making the ceiling shake violently as debris started falling around them.

"Oh yeah, forgot to mention," Barry whispered, eyes opened wide. "The house might collapse any second now. The ghost girl told me."

"What!?" she turned towards him, mouth agape. "Ghost g... you know what, I don't want to know. Enma, Ember!"

Her starter took a deep breath and spit three torrents of flame in quick succession, all converging at the ghost Pokemon's current location. But the electric poltergeist was too quick, and without any trouble he managed to dodge between them, appearing directly in front of Enma and shocking him once more, this time throwing him towards the ground. Furious, he pushed himself up and jmped upwards to his opponent, eyes glowing red.

"What are you doing?" Inyssa protested. "You can't punch him, you idiot. It's a ghost!"

But Enma simply smiled, and while in mid air he let out a mighty roar as he covered his entire body on a small coat of fire. He assumed a ball position and propelled himself towards the ghost Pokemon, turned into a fierce igneous wheel. Unlike his embers, this attack was too fast for his opponent to avoid, and before he had time to counter attack he was hit with the full force of the impact, dissipating part of his body and sending him backwards toward the wall.

"Whoa..." Barry gasped behind her, an incredulous look on his face. "That was really cool."

"I forgot about Flame Wheel," she admitted.

Enma landed on one knee, hand against the ground and a victorious smile on his face. As for the ghost Pokemon, it was clear the attack had done too much damage to it, and now it was struggling to maintain enough energy to keep itself afloat, much less use any attack. Not missing a beat Inyssa looked for one of the Pokeballs that she'd bought on Floaroma. She could hear the sound of the ceiling slowly falling apart, and she knew that they didn't have enough time. But just when she was about to throw it the Pokemon flew upwards, heading toward the ceiling in an attempt to escape.

Barry sent his palm forward, "Not so fast you lightbulb jerk! Razen, Pursuit!"

The Buizel moved like lightning; in a moment he was in the middle of the air in front of the mysterious Pokemon, and before he had any time to react he hit it with his tail, covered in dark energy. The clash was enough to render him unconscious, leaving him floating in the middle of the room. Inyssa smiled, and while making a mental note to thank Barry later she threw the Pokeball at the ghost, managing a perfect hit which trapped him inside. The ball fell into the ground with a slight  _clank_ , and the light on the center of it blinked three times before it went silent.

"Booyah!" She pumped her fist upwards, a tired smile on her face. "Take that you short-circuited Ghastly piece of shit!"

"Hey Niss, we should probably... WHOA!" Barry put a hand on her shoulder, but a piece of ceiling almost fell on top of his head. "Yeah, that!"

She nodded, and raced towards her new catch, avoiding debris as it fell around her. Once she secured the Pokeball into her belt she turned around towards Enma.

"We'll have to bust through the wall," she told him. "The hidden exit must be at the other side of this room."

"Did you inhale too much dust or something? That'll only make the place fall down even faster!" Barry protested, putting both hands on top of his head.

"We're almost there! Come on, I'm not walking all the way back to Floaroma," she set her eyes on the wall with all the paintings. "Enma, Flame Wheel!"

"I hate following your plans," Barry sighed, turning to his Buizel. "Razen, Aqua Jet!"

Both Pokemon surrounded themselves in their own elements, and with a quick jump they propelled themselves towards the wall. The impact shook the entire Chateau, fire and water exploding into a cloud of steam and dust that covered the room and made it impossible to see anything for a couple seconds. When it finally settled a ray of light entered through the hole made from both attacks, although they could see the walls beginning to crack around it, threatening to bury them alive.

Without a word they both returned their Pokemon to their respective balls and started running towards the exit, holding each other's hand while the house collapsed. Almost blinded, they managed to make it out through the previously made hole just as it broke and came down, sealing the exit. Both kids fell to the ground, legs shaking, and with the strength they had left they looked at the abandoned Chateau as it fell apart into debris and dust, burying everything inside it to oblivion.

They waited until the sounds of the collapse finished, and once the remains of the house were still and dead and clouds of dust surrounded the part of the forest they were in she finally stood up, not without difficulty. Silence surrounded them for almost a minute while they thought what to say, until Inyssa finally broke the ice.

"Remind me to punch Metchi in the face next time we see her," she spoke with difficulty, her throat hurting. "Safe passage my ass."

"Remind ME to punch you when my body stops shaking," he protested, shaking his head. "That was the stupidest plan you could've come up with. And you're supposed to be the smart one."

She gave him a pat in the back and sat next to him, breathing deeply as she tried to recover her energy. She could feel her friend's heartbeat next to her.

"You keep saying that, and I don't think it's true. Besides, we made it though, the hidden path should be around here," she smiled. "And I have a new, weird Pokemon. Everything went as planned."

"And now I know that ghosts exist," Barry whispered, eyes almost closed. "That's gonna help me tonight when I try to sleep."

They both started laughing, their bodies and minds exhausted and their hearts beating fast still. The path to Eterna City now laid ahead of them, and it was sweeter than ever thanks to what they had to go through to get there.

"Well..." Inyssa took a deep breath, and looked at Barry in the eyes, smiling, "you can't tell me I don't take you on cool adventures."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally written as a Halloween episode. Hope it feels like it.


	13. Strain

Barry never had to consider the fact that walking a mile uphill would be somewhat difficult after almost breaking his spine.

Every step he took made him feel like he had a burning stick instead of a spinal cord, and the fact that he was covered in the dust raised by the Chateau's collapse didn't give him a very pristine look. His left arm was wrapped around Niss' shoulder, who had thankfully agreed to help him on the way there, and by  _agreed_  he meant she forced her aid on him, not letting him walk a single step alone in fears of hurting himself more. His friend was struggling with part of another person's weight on her shoulders, but she hadn't complained once.

The hidden grotto behind the house lead to a small, narrow path that ran up towards the hills at the east of Eterna City. It didn't appear on the map for some reason, and according to Niss' guess it should take them to the mountain path right past Route 206, letting them bypass any security and entering the city safely.

As the minutes went by Barry tried to subtly show Niss that he was getting better, putting more force into his steps and walking proudly, even though it hurt like hell. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy being so close to her, but he felt bad just letting her do all the work when it came to their journey. After all his friend had gone through in the past days, he felt the need to step up to her somewhat. Not literally, because he could barely stand, but it was time he took things seriously. He wouldn't get to be Champion by letting Niss babysit him.

"Yeah, that's right..." he told himself, not realizing he was talking out loud.

"Wanna include me in your private talk with yourself?" Niss spoke at his side, breathing heavily. "What are you thinking about?"

"I was thinking about how great it's gonna be when I become the Champion," he lied, trying to form a playful smile.

Niss knit her eyebrows and sent an icy look his way. He could see the smile she was trying to supress.

"You know, I could leave you here stranded," she put a finger on her forehead, pretending to be deep in thought. "It would be easy, and no one would ever find you. Would be a nice way to get rid of a competitor for the throne."

"Fair enough."

Finally they arrived at the hilltop and the entrance to the hidden mountain path. Below them lay the distant shapes of Eterna City's buildings and houses, flashes of green and maroon making it look like a naturist painting. A gust of wind hit him in the face and ruffled his hair, reinvigorating him with every breath he took. Below them. the dark stone of the floor went down slightly, circling around the city in a path that would have been impossible to see unless one were looking from above.

"At least Metchi didn't lie about this," Niss said, relief clear in her tone. "We should take a break now, the downward path might hurt your back."

"What! No!" he jumped out of her arms and stood up straight to show her that he was feeling well, which he was not. "I'm as healthy as a Tauros, I could keep walking for hours. Heck, I could run for hours!"

"No you couldn't," she cut him off, ragged breath. "But if you say so, let's keep going."

The boy jumped down towards the path, the pain from the impact almost making him pass out. Next to him Niss landed gracefully, while trying to clean dust off her red coat.

"I can't wait until our Starly can carry us around," he mentioned, trying to distract her from his poor condition. "Flying with dad's Salamance was awesome, I want to do that with my Pokemon too."

"Well, I wouldn't count on that soon, on my end at least," Niss sighed. "I haven't been able to train Steven lately, he's not feeling too well about fighting after... what happened in the Windworks."

He  mentally cursed himself from bringing up that loaded topic. He looked around, trying to change the subject, but he couldn't think of much.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up," Niss smiled weakly. "We've been through enough shit already, we should think positively."

"Yeah! Like the next Gym!" he smiled cheerfully. "Man I'm so excited, you're finally gonna see me fight. Though I don't know what type they use."

"Grass, according to the guide inside the Pokétch," she said. "The leader is named Gardenia I think."

"Wow, talk about applying for the job you're made for," he said, and Niss had to stiffle a laugh. "Grass is really easy though, it has a ton of weaknesses."

"You shouldn't base your Pokemon choice just on types," she warned him. "You need to put more thought into it if you want to be the Champion."

"Oh yeah? Then let me try to guess your team." He stroked his chin as if he were trying to solve a puzzle. "Shadi, Steven and... Enma maybe? Wow, that was hard to figure out."

Niss looked away, pouting, "You don't know me. I could use... uh..." she bit her lip, considering her options, "well... my new ghost buddy might be strong enough to surpass the type disadvantage."

Barry gulped, suddenly remembering that his friend had that awful ghost in one of her Pokeballs. She hadn't mentioned it before, but he could see that it was bothering her. And he understood why, that thing almost managed to kill them back in the Chateau.

"You haven't named it yet?"

She sighed, "I'm not sure about it. I just... I don't know how I feel about having that thing in my team. I don't even know what it is! And the Pokédex has no information on it."

"That means it's a super rare Pokemon!" he tried to cheer her up. "Maybe a legendary even."

"Wohoo, lucky me," she replied sardonically. "Must be the shittiest legendary ever. In any case, I think I'll ask Rowan about it later, he might know a bit more about it."

Silence grew around them as they continued walking, almost reaching Eterna City. Both kids avoided the other's eyes, trying not to think about the same question that was dancing around their heads like an annoying fly.

"So..." Barry crossed his arms, trying to appear casual, "do you... wanna talk about what happened back there?"

"Not now," she replied, shoulders dropped. "Just... too much shit at once. Let me rest before we discuss Murder Ghost Funhouse again."

"Wow, how long did it take you to come up with that amazing name?" he spat back, feeling a pint of irritation.

"Fuck off."

The path became narrower as they approached the bottom of the mountain, the enormous shadows of the walls around them hiding their presence. Barry could hear Niss' breathing get shallower, and he could swear she was walking faster than before as the dark swallowed the path; the same thing that had happened the last time they entered a cave. He did his best to ignore it and kept the pace with her, wanting nothing more than to get to the city and throw himself at the first bed he got across.

His body almost cried in relief when rays of sunlight hit him in the face as the hillside opened up to Eterna City. They emerged from the east near Route 211, close to the vegetable fields that rested behind some of the buildings of the city, which obscured them almost completely.

"No wonder no one knows about this place," Niss commented, breathing heavily.

With upmost care they sneaked through the sides of the buildings, trying to get as few eyes on them as possible. Once they emerged into one of the side streets they were relieved to see that there was no security around, only a few civilians doing their last stroll through the place before the sun went down. Niss grabbed him by the arm and they both started walking south, trying to locate the Pokemon Center before anyone noticed them.

Barry couldn't stop looking around, admiring the beautiful architecture of the place. Most of the houses were built on what appeared to be a mix of cobblestone and ancient rock, although they didn't look as old as those in Sandgem. The town still had a very traditional feeling to it. The colors around them were mostly cold, blues and greens and grays that gave the place a very relaxed look, almost like the city itself was part of the nature around it. He was beginning to feel like himself more with every step he took, his bright smile returning to his face as he remembered the reason he set out in his journey, the wonders of the world being reward enough for him.

He turned to say something to Niss but found her looking at something in the distance, eyes narrowed.

"The hell is that?" She pointed south, beyond one of the old houses, and Barry got on his toes to see it more easily.

His eyes set on what appeared to be a towering shape of bronze, standing out above everything around it. The floor beneath it was elevated, with shiny marble steps leading up to it. The statue stood proud at about five feet tall, it's imposing shape seemingly attracting everyone's eyes to it, or at least Barry's. He started walking towards it, the pain on his back almost disappearing as he got close. He couldn't get his eyes off the metal bust, and as it was now almost within arm's reach he could feel something stirring behind his eyes.

He stopped just a feet away from it, slowly shaking that feeling away from him and placing a hand against his temple. What... had just happened? He heard Niss stopping at his side, her eyes also set on the statue. It had the appearance of a dragon, with robust wings growing from its back and something that appeared to be armor covering the body, with big, strong extremities; arms raised towards the sky.

"It looks like a Pokemon," she whispered, eyes narrowed, "but I have no idea which."

He got closer and tried to read the inscription on the lower part of it, but the silver ornament appeared to be extremely old, and the words in it had vanished a long time ago. The people around him, including Niss, were simply admiring the statue for its beauty, but something inside Barry told him there was something more there, he couldn't exactly tell what, but...

"Such pitiable, misunderstood praise."

Both kids' hearts jumped at the sound of that voice, creeping from the other side of the statue. They exchanged a knowing look, their faces beginning to pale. They could see the shape of another man standing close, arms behind his back and faded eyes set on the unknown's Pokemon face.

"Time and space, intertwined in a strangely shaped spiral around Sinnoh," he kept talking to himself, not noticing the kids looking at him. "These Pokemon, revered not for logic, but for fear. To think that this beauty is tainted by such unnecessary emotions, it truly is a shame," he closed his eyes for a moment, and Barry felt like time began to move again. "Wait for me, Dialga and Palkia. I shall weave your powers into a new, better world."

His eyes opened slowly, and his sight shifted towards them. Sharp pain flared in his chest as the icy grey of his eyes fell on him. Barry's body was frozen, and next to him Inyssa's breathing had stopped momentarily.

"Pardon me," he spoke slowly, his voice akin to white noise, a continuous line of sound. "Stand aside."

He walked between them, once again leaving them breathless as he dissapeared toward the growing darkness of the now still city. The noise around them suddenly returned, and Barry could breathe again. He felt Niss' fingers wrap around his, and when he looked down at her he noticed her face paler than ever.

"It... it was him," she whispered, lower lip trembling. "The man in the lake."

"Cyrus," the name came from his mouth like poison. "What's he doing here? Does he just go around saying stuff like that near kids?"

Niss was standing still, her eyes still set on the place the man had disappeared to.

"Let's not worry about him," she said. "He's just a creep."

Barry heard her, but he didn't move an inch. He approached the statue, his hand gracing the metal in front of him, as if looking for something. He felt like he was being called to.

"Uh... Barry?" he heard Niss' voice behind him, almost distant, "what are you doing?"

He didn't respond. His hand set on the cold metal of the statue as he moved it through all its body parts. Something inside his pocket felt heavy, though he didn't worry about it for the moment. The metal the unknown Pokemon was made of started feeling warmer and warmer as his fingers got close to the spot he was looking for. Finally he laid his hands on top of the core in the middle of the Pokemon's chest, and the moment he touched it he knew it was made of a different material, a lot rougher and colder than the bronze covering its body. Slowly he extracted a small part of it, until a tiny, dark square of rock was now in his hand, eerily familiar.

"You broke it!" Niss' voice took him out of his trance, and he turned around to see her horrified face.

"No I didn't," he replied, voice unusually low. "This wasn't part of the statue."

She got closer and peered at what Barry held in the palm of his hand. A piece of square stone. Flat and tinted in dark red, its sides engraved with strange symbols. Much like the one he'd found back at the Old Chateau.

"Isn't it just like that thing you got from... the house?" Niss was clearly about to mention the ghost girl, but she stopped herself. "What was it called? The Specter Plate?"

He nodded weakly, feeling the piece of rock with his fingers, "Yeah, seems like it. They both look the same and have those words on them."

"Too bad we can't read them," Niss sighed. "Who knows what these things are, maybe we could sell them to a museum or something."

Barry felt a strange cold in his body, and slowly he looked at his friend, eyebrows knit.

"What do you mean, can't you read it?" he asked her, incredulous. "Is it too dark or something?"

Niss gave him the exact same puzzled look, and a smile formed on her face.

"Unless you know the language it's written in..." she laughed lightly, thinking he was pulling a prank on her, "I mean, you did know morse code so who knows."

"You mean English? Yeah I'm pretty sure I can read that," he spat back, not understanding Niss' sudden sarcastic tone.

Her smile faded, and slowly she opened her eyes, lower lip trembling. "W... are you serious? You can actually read those scribbles?"

Barry was completely lost. What did she mean by scribbles? The words were clear as day, almost like they were written in a white piece of paper. He took the other plate out of his pocket and held both of them in front of him, confirming that he could indeed read both.

"Bending air around their wings, fanning fires with their spirits, the Draco Plate represents bottomless potential," he read the red one aloud, that warm feeling behind his eyes coming back. "That's what the one we got from the statue says, as for the other one..." he raised the other plate, "the silence of dark, the calmness of death, the Specter Plate represents second chances."

His voice stopped, and silence surrounded them once again like an oppressive force. Barry looked at his friend, and he froze at the sight of her face. Her skin was pale as a corpse, and her eyes were opened wide, set directly on his. The warmth inside him suddenly disappeared, and Niss let out a gasp.

"What is it?" he questioned, now afraid that something was wrong with him.

"Y... your eyes," she spoke  in whispers. "No... no, it's nothing, I must be way too tired." She placed a palm against her face, and took a deep breath. "Dear god, I really need to collect myself, I feel like I'm going crazy."

Barry put a hand on her shoulder. She'd been acting weird ever since they entered that mansion, and that hadn't stopped after they escaped either. He wanted to say something, but he wasn't sure what, giving the current circumstances.

"We should go to the Pokemon Center," he proposed, forming a warm smile towards her. "I think we've been through enough trouble today."

"I agree completely."

_Oh no._

They both turned towards the familiar voice, spines turning to ice. The dark haired woman stood behind them, arms crossed and expression like that of a furious Ursaring. Barry wanted to smile at the sight of his mother, but the anger in her eyes scared him too much to do so.

"I've been looking for you kids for two days already," Sarah spoke every word slowly, filling them with force that made them want to run away. "Pokemon Center. Now. We need to talk."

 

* * *

 

 

Not a single word was said as they walked towards the Pokemon Center, the sun finally disappearing behind the mountains, the only lights illuminating the path being those of the lanterns at the sides of the street. In front of him his mother moved swiftly, her pale hands clenched into fists, and the sound of her steps ringing on his ears. He felt an oppressive anxiety making its way up from his stomach, and one look at Niss told him that she was as scared as he was. Like a wild Tyranitar, Sarah was not a woman one wanted to anger.

The doors of the red building opened for them as they approached, the warm lights inside filling him with something like relief, and the smell of fresh food making his stomach growl. He saw his mother stop momentarily, looking around the entire lobby, and then walking straight towards one of the nearby tables, where another woman was sitting. Barry's stomach made a small turn at the sight of her, and he felt his face getting slightly hot. Her hair was short and orange, with small streaks of black beneath it, and her bored eyes were a beautiful dark honey. She wore what appeared to be a green poncho which didn't cover her midriff, and her bright orange pants were very worn out and torn around the knees.

"I'm sorry for making you wait, Gardenia," Sarah's voice was cold and to the point, her eyes almost obscured by her dark hair, "I ran into my son and her friend on the way."

Something in the back of Barry's mind lit up. Gardenia? The name sounded familiar.

"Seems your efforts paid off, in one aspect at least," Gardenia relaxed back into her chair, lazily smiling at the older woman. "Finally found the little sprouts, eh? They seem like a couple of troublemakers, no wonder they made you work so hard."

"Wait, was that a plant pun?" he couldn't help but ask, and he finally remembered the conversation he had with Niss an hour ago. "Oh! You're the Gym leader, right? The one with the weird name?"

Niss facepalmed, letting out a sigh, "Oh my god..."

"The one and only, my pal." She rested the back of her head on her palms, looking as relaxed as a Slakoth. "You're Sarah's and Palmer's son, and that behind you must be Dawn Jr, second edition." She laughed at her own joke. "Nice to meet ya', I've heard of the two of you."

"Y... you have?" Niss asked, her cheeks tinted red.

"What are you doing hanging out with mom?" he added, trying to avoid his mother's flaring eyes for as long as possible.

"Sarah and I have been in contact for quite some time now," Gardenia replied between yawns. "She's pretty much the only Association member I can stand, and we've been working together on that whole bridge business." She sighed. "We've made some progress but it's still a long way to go methinks. Haven't had to work this hard since I became a Gym leader, but helping investigations is in my contract, so what can I do, right?"

"Yes, quite," Sarah pushed her glasses up, her lips thin and pale. "Gardenia, would you mind giving us some space? I need to have a talk with them. We will review the police's documents tomorrow."

"Jeez..." Gardenia stood up and threw her hands in the air, stretching like a Glameow. Barry tried really hard not to stare at the way her poncho was lifted up, revealing the woman's midriff. "Sorry kids, hope she doesn't scold you that much. I'll be in my Gym all day tomorrow, so feel free to come by."

She made a peace sign with her fingers as she left the Pokemon Center, leaving them alone with Sarah. None of them said anything for a while, until his mother finally sat down where Gardenia was previously and looked at them with a glare which could've paralyzed a Salamance. Without saying a word both kids sat down at the other side of the table, waiting. The woman put her back against the chair, closed her eyes for a moment, and breathed deeply. When she opened them again they had lost part of the anger behind them, now only reflecting something akin to sadness.

"What were you two thinking?"

Her words hit him like a hammer. He was expecting her to yell at him, but somehow her disappointed tone was more hurtful than anything he could've prepared for. He glanced at his friend, who was similarly speechless, a drop of sweat running down her face.

"Do you know how worried I was?" her shoulders dropped as she spoke, all semblances of rage disappearing from her face. "After I heard what happened in Floaroma I dropped my assignments immediately and had Palmer fly me there, but you were nowhere to be found. Then a couple hours ago I get a report that someone saw a massive cloud of dust and smoke rise up from Eterna Forest, and once they approached it they told me the Old Chateau had collapsed on itself, possibly due to someone's intervention," she made emphasis on that last word. "I want you to explain me what happened."

She crossed her arms, hawk eyes staring at them. Barry opened his mouth to respond, but Niss' voice cut him out.

"It was my fault," her words came out garbled, as if she wanted to get them out as fast as possible, "I convinced Barry to follow me through Eterna Forest, and I went alone to fight those Galactic thugs. He didn't have anything to do with it."

"What!? No, that's bullcrap!" Barry slammed a hand on the table. "I would've followed you to fight those creeps if I knew, and we both decided to go throught the forest!"

"You were just following me because I gave you no choice," she spat back, tone sour.

"Screw you!" he yelled, startling his friend, "I'm not your sidekick Niss, I'm a trainer like you! My decisions are my own, and if I want to go with you to do something dangerous that's because I do actually want that, because I like being around you!" he didn't realize the people around him could hear him, although he wouldn't have cared either way. "Stop blaming yourself for both of us. If we both act like idiots then we should share the blame, that's how this works!"

Niss raised her eyes to meet his, and he could see a pint of wetness in them. She bit her lip and clinched her fists, not saying another word. Sarah cleared her throat as to get their attention.

"Well, I see there's also plenty you two should talk about," For the first time Barry could make up a hint of a smile in her voice. "I'm glad to hear that you know what you did wrong, but that doesn't mean I can simply ignore it. You do realize that if anyone but me had found out about this, they would be required to take away your trainer card, right? You would not be able to participate in the League Challenge until you both cleared your names, which could take months," she explained, and could see the horror in their faces. "I will not turn you in, but I need you to understand that if it happens again, my hands are tied. I need you to promise me you will not do something so reckless again."

Barry could hear a  _Or if you do, don't get caught_ , in her voice, though he decided not to comment on it. They both nodded, heads low. Sarah then looked at Niss, and put one of her hands on top of hers.

"Inyssa, I know that I'm in no position to tell you what to do," her tone was soft as she spoke, "but I want you to know that I do care about you as if you were my daughter. Please, don't put yourself in that kind of danger anymore."

Niss didn't say a word, simply looking away from Sarah as if she wanted to ignore everything around her.

"You are your own person and you don't have to live up to anyone's image. You're both already great trainers, and you'll only improve with time. I'm already proud of both of you."

Barry's eyes began to sting, and next to him he could see a small shine behind the shadows covering Niss' eyes. His friend opened her mouth and spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Can I go book a room? I'm really tired," she tried to say as plainly as possible, her voice breaking slightly.

Sarah took two things out of her pocket, one of them being a key, and the other a square piece of paper. "I already did that for you, here's the key. I was also told to give this to you. Your mother sent you a letter."

She handed both objects to her, and Niss grabbed them weakly, her eyes moving towards the wax stamp in the front of the envelope that showed her family's symbol. She stared at it for a few seconds, until she finally put both things in the pocket of her coat.

"Thanks," she spoke, barely any force in her voice, "I'll go to sleep now."

"Have a good night. Tomorrow I'll escort both of you to the gym if you want."

She simply nodded, and without much fanfare she got up and walked towards one of the staircases heading to her new room. Barry was left alone with his mother, not knowing exactly what to say to make the situation less awkward.

"Mom... I..." he put a hand behind his back, a nod on his stomach, "...sorry."

"As long as you've learned your lesson..."

"It really wasn't her fault, mom," he clarified. "I just wanted us to be on equal footing, I didn't want to leave her alone."

"I understand," Sarah nodded absentmindedly. "Inyssa has her family's fire inside her. Her father was the same, as were Johanna and Shadi, although in a different manner of course. And I just need to look at your father to understand why you did what you did. You two are like flame and spark, and the entire world around you is made of gunpowder."

He couldn't help but smile, remembering what had happened at the Chateau, "Well... you're not wrong."

His mother put both hands in the table, and with difficulty she helped herself up, exhaustion reflected in her eyes.

"I have to go back to work now," she scowled at the prospect, "but I'll be back in the morning to see how you're both doing." She walked towards him and put her hand on top of his head, ruffling his hair. "Take care, would you? I would sleep better at night knowing that you're not in trouble the moment you're out of my sight."

Barry smiled brightly at her, and put both arms around her. Sarah returned the hug with twice the strenght and planted a kiss on top of his head.

"I love you. Stay safe, and help each other."

 

* * *

 

 

Almost two hours later Barry was laying on his bed, eyes set on the roof and mind restless. In a chair next to him were his orange and white jacket and his green scarf, waving with the wind like the leaves outside. After a hot meal and a cold shower the pain on his back had almost completely disappeared, now only a numb feeling. He thought he'd be asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, but something was keeping him awake, the thoughts inside his head overpowering his exhaustion.

He reached with one hand to his pocket and retrieved both strange plates he'd gotten recently. Something told him there was a certain significance to them, like a riddle hiding an answer that he couldn't quite reach yet. The strange girl in the Chateau, the warmth he felt when close to that statue, the way Niss reacted to him reading aloud the inscriptions... something was off, and he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

A knock on his door got him out of his trance, as he put the plates back in his pocket and looked towards the dark wooden frame. Before he had time to respond the door opened and through it appeared the shape of his friend, the light at the other side illuminating everything but her face. She was missing her usual coat and hat, her short hair freely covering part of her face.

"Niss!" he yelped, surprised by her sudden appearance. "What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't really sleep," he heard the smile in her voice as she approached him, "and I wanted to see how you were doing."

She walked towards the chair close to his bed, and putting his jacket and scarf on top of the table she sat on it.

"Rough day, don't you think?" she sighed, letting a small laugh out. "Man, how embarrassing. Between the Chateau and your mother I've been handled like a ragdoll around."

Barry didn't exactly know what to say, and he felt like he shouldn't interrupt. Niss stood silent for a few seconds, and then began to speak again.

"Sorry for what I said before," her head hung low. "I didn't want to imply that I didn't respect you as an equal or anything. I just... didn't want you to get in trouble with Sarah."

"Oh... yeah, don't worry about it," Barry waved his hand and tried to smile. "I got a bit emotional too."

"Sometimes I feel like our friendship revolves around us trying to out-stupid each other and then blaming ourselves for it."

"I think that's what our friendship has always been about," he said. "But that's what fuels our amazing adventures! Come on Niss, I've gotten more fun out of these past few days than everything we did back in Twinleaf. And I have you to thank for that."

The light coming from outside illuminated Niss' eyes, and he could see the warmth in them.

"Yeah, I guess we've been part of some strange stuff. The whole Chateau incident was sort of like that horror movie we saw that time when we were kids. The one with the poltergeist in the kitchen, remember?"

"Oh yeah! You mean Pastrygeist!" he smiled, memories of them watching the movie together in their couch flooding his mind. "Yeah it was kind of like that, except we were missing the food puns."

"Well, our journey is still young, so who knows."

They couldn't help but laugh, which sent pain rippling through Barry's back. After a few seconds Inyssa got up, eyes still set on him.

"So, we're cool?"

"Yeah... we're cool," he replied, giving her a thumbs up.

"Awesome, then get ready for tomorrow, because it's time we get our second badge already."

She began to make her way towards the exit of the room, and stopped just before putting her hand on the doorknob. She stood there, considering her words, and finally turned towards Barry.

"You know..." she whispered, choosing her words carefully, "being around you, going in dumb adventures together, it reminds me of why I chose to be a trainer rather than anything else." Her voice was warm and clear, and it made the knot inside Barry's chest disappear. "I guess what I'm trying to say is... thanks. For putting up with me."

And before he had a chance to respond Niss walked out of the door, her face tinted red. The boy stood there, laying on the bed and repeating her words in his head. His lips slowly curved into a smile.

A few minutes later he was sleeping soundly, like a Snorlax.


	14. Guilt and Flowers

Not sooner had the sun risen through the east that Inyssa set foot on the door of Eterna City's Gym, posture rigid as steel and eyes brimming with determination.

She inhaled the sharp, cold air around her and the sweet scent of her ivory cotton scarf, freshly washed that morning from all the dirt and soot that had followed her since the Chateau. She felt something poking her in the forehead, Steven's tiny legs were adjusting his body while he was on top of her hat, the wind from the north threatening to topple him backwards. To her left and right stood Shadi, her thick mustache shivering with the morning's cold, and Enma, his body steaming and the flame on his tail burning violently. Behind her she could barely hear Barry's breathing, and when she turned around towards him she found him in the same state she'd seen him since they left the Pokemon Center, chin up and hands clenched into fists. His smile was thin and pale, stretched across his face in the same way Sarah's always was; his body was still but she could almost feel the electricity coming from his pores, a good night's sleep apparently being enough to restore the boy to his usual overexcited state.

She smiled back, the dryness in her lips hurting slightly, and she felt her heart starting to beat faster.

"Last time this didn't go as expected," she broke the silence, inadvertently delaying their entrance to the establishment, "but this place does seem to have an actual Gym Leader, so I say we mark this as our official first test in the Sinnoh League."

He nodded, arms crossed,"Back in Oreburgh we didn't even gave each other points after our battles. How's the score right now?"

"Forty six to forty four," she allowed herself a coy smile, which she made sure Barry could see. "I'm winning."

"Well, I'm feeling lucky today. Whoever has the least Pokemon fainted at the end of the battle wins a point. If you lose the fight, you lose a point. Sounds good?"

A simple nod was her only response, and after another moment of hesitation her hands moved towards both sides of the door, pushing them aside. The path ahead opened up to a mess of green and browns, with ocassional different colors adorning what appeared to be a mix between an in-door park and a winter garden. Unlike Floaroma, the place didn't have an overpowering smell, but a subtle citric scent which danced around them like mist, complementing the cold wind. As she walked through the dirt road beneath her feet, her gaze moved between the flora of the place: camellias, winterberries and witch hazels created a mix of colors that were quite pleasant to the sight, so much that she started walking slower just to appreciate their beauty. Unfortunately, Barry protested by clashing his head against her back, in a similar way to when they were kids.

"Come on Niss! We already smelled flowers in Floaroma, let's go fight the Gym Leader!" he yelled, and next to him Enma nodded energetically.

She shot them an icy look and reluctantly moved forward until the beautiful garden was behind her and the second door towards the actual Gym was at hand's reach. Once again she walked through, and at the other side she found the place they had gotten into so much trouble trying to get to. The room was twice as big as Oreburgh's arena, the steps at the side shining brightly below the sunlight, and the sand beneath her feet covering every inch of the battlefield. A few kids and teenagers were scattered through the place, either talking to each other or training their grass Pokemon. In the exact middle of the place stood Gardenia and Sarah, the only two adults that could be seen around.

"Mom! When did you get here?" She felt her body being jerked forward as Barry almost jumped on top of her to get a better view. "We didn't find you when we woke up so we though you were working!"

Sarah's turn was sudden, her body freezing for a fraction of a second before her eyes moved towards them with the speed of a Ninjask. Inyssa could see a glimpse of surprise in her face, altough it only lasted a second before she relaxed her guard, her lips forming a relieved smile. She appeared to be on edge, ready to jump to action at a moment's notice. Dark bags adorned the underside of her eyes, revealing just how little sleep the woman had gotten the night before.

"Barry... Inyssa..." she spoke in a low, raspy tone, and behind her Gardenia winked at both of them, "good morning, I wasn't expecting you until twelve at least."

"Is everything okay?" Inyssa asked.

"Yes, don't worry about me," she raised a hand, showing a thin smile. "We were simply discussing town matters."

"Still working on that terrorism case," Gardenia said, both hands on her hips. "We haven't got much info on those Galactic guys, but there's some weird stuff going on around here. A couple citizens have been missing, and Pokemon all over the place are acting strange. We've had to deal with some violent cases last night"

"Gardenia, they don't need to hear that," Sarah scowled.

"Right, right, sorry about that," she smiled nervously. "Aaaanyways, it's nice to see you two, I've been waiting for ya'." She moved her gaze from the kids to Inyssa's Pokemon. "I see you already got your companions ready."

"We didn't want to wait in line for our fight," Inyssa admitted, trying to imbue her voice with as much confidence as possible, "and we figured it'd be better for your reputation if as few people as possible saw you lose against two children."

Gardenia's eyes sparked with  either amusement or irritation, perhaps a mix of both. She approached the kids, her cinnamon hair waving with the wind coming from the open roof of the arena, and with a simple movement of her hand she produced a shiny, Green Pokeball.

"Oh I like these kids," she said, and Inyssa noticed Barry's slight blush at her side. "Alright sprouts, how many badges do you have? I wanna make sure I get a proper fight; I might be a gardener but tending to flowers and plants ain't the only thing I'm good at."

"We have one badge, miss... I mean Gardenia!" Barry responded, his voice an octave higher than usual.

"Yeah, we got it from Grumpy McFossilFace," Inyssa told her. "Also you already used that sprout pun last night."

"Ah, you must have fought against Roark," she nodded. "I can see how that would drop your spirits a bit, poor kid's not really made for the job is he. But don't you worry, I'll make sure you get your time's worth here!" She punched the palm of her own hand, eyebrows raising and eyes full of fire.

Inyssa couldn't help but feel weirded out by the woman's changing behaviour. She'd seemed so chill and relaxed back in the Pokemon Center.

"We're ready when you are."

"Actually... before we start, I have a proposition for you two," she told them while spinning her Pokeball on her index finger. "As long as Sarah doesn't mind if I bend the Association rules a little bit."

"Pretend I'm not here," Sarah replied, attempting to form a smile.

"Perfect! Alright you two, listen carefully. "League regulations set three Pokemon as the maximum I can use against trainers with two badges or less, but that doesn't sound very fun, does it? And since you both seem to know each other..." she tried to contain a laugh, "what do you think about a double battle? Both of you against me, four Pokemon on each side. That way I can really see what you kids are made of."

The idea caught both of them off guard. Inyssa stood there, weakly stomping her feet in the ground, her eyebrows knit. But before she had time to consider it her friend's voice almost deafened her.

"Oh my gosh can we do that!?" she hadn't seem Barry so excited since he got that Snorlax plushy from her on his last birthday. "You're on! Right, Niss!?"

She shrugged, "Fine by me."

Gardenia needed to hear no more. With a simple smile she turned around and started walking towards the other side of the arena, ordering her students to clear the field as she passed through. Sarah shot them a warm look and headed towards the stands.

"Guess that means we can only use two Pokemon each," she whispered, biting her finger. "Sorry Enma, but you'll have to stay out of this one."

Enma's flame shot up until it was twice its size, and from his flaring eyes and the fact he was showing his teeth at her she guessed he wasn't too happy about her decision.

"You've already gotten a ton of experience these past days," she said. "Your other teammates need to fight once in a while too."

Enma simply spat at his side, crossing his arms and looking away from her. She figured that was the best possible reaction she was going to get from him, so she took it. Turning towards Barry she found him lost in thought.

"Do you mind telling me what Pokemon are you going to use?" she asked him, bringing him back to reality.

"And ruin the surprise? Come on Niss, you know me better than that," he smiled, taking a Pokeball out of his belt. "Trust me, I've got an amazing idea, probably the best I've come up with! You'll absolutely die of shock."

She shrugged, and figured that she would find out eventually. Without another word they walked towards the designated ring for challengers, and before a minute passed the arena had been completely cleared. At the stands on the side were a couple spectators, mostly Gym students. Gardenia's voice filled the stadium, with a booming sound like that of a sports commentator.

"This shall be our first battle of the day so everyone pay attention, y'all might learn something for once!" she spoke to everyone in the stands. "Barry Paladino, Inyssa Dawn, are you two ready?"

"Yes we are, miss Gardenia!" Barry yelled, his voice cracking from excitedness.

"Bring it!" Inyssa yelled.

"In that case, today's Gym battle..." she raised her right hand toward's the sky, "oficially begins!"

Inyssa closed her eyes for a moment, and for the first time in days she felt perfectly in place. All her worries about what had happened recently dissapeared from her mind, and she could feel the wild beating of her heart, warming her entire body. She allowed herself a simple smile; that was exactly the feeling she'd been looking for, what she seeked after abandoning her home. She clenched her right fist, and once she opened her eyes she pointed directly at Gardenia, her spirit burning.

"Shadi, I choose you!"

The bug Pokemon jumped into action, her thin scythes glistening beneath the sunlight. Gardenia took two Pokeballs from her poncho and threw them into the air, the light coming from them materializing into two somewhat familiar Pokemon. One of them was the same green turtle she'd seen with Lucas, while the other shape was a taller, graceful figure with two roses instead of hands, and Inyssa recognized it as Bret's evolution. The Turtwig and Roselia stood in battle position.

"Ohh I'm so pumped for this!" Barry yelled next to her, and with as much force as possible he threw his Pokeball into the air. "Go, Kitsune!"

That piqued Inyssa's interest, and she set her sight directly on the shape appearing next to Shadi, excited to see what new Pokemon Barry had managed to catch. The pulsing light turned into a small, yellow and brown fox , with thin arms and legs and slanted, almost completely closed eyes. The creature appeared already sitting in the floor, and the bobbing of his head told her that he wanted nothing more than to sleep peacefully.

"An Abra," she whispered, not believing what she was seeing. "Are you serious!? You're going to use an Abra in a Gym battle!?" her arms were slightly trembling, and she felt a strong urge to put her hands around his neck. "What's wrong with you?"

Barry simply smiled, not being fazed by his friend's rage, and pointed at his Pokemon.

"Quick, jump into Shadi's back," he ordered.

The Abra turned around to look at him, and with a deep sigh he did as he was told, lazily grabbing onto the bug's Pokemon back with his thin arms. Inyssa's mouth hung open, her brain trying to determine just what the hell was Barry thinking. Abra were useless in battle, the only move they knew was...

A light lit up in her head, and she couldn't help but laugh. Barry's expression was a smug one as he stroked his chin, staring at her expectedly. He really was an unappreciated genius.

"Turtwig, use Curse!" Gardenia yelled from the other side of the arena, pointing at their Pokemon. "Roselia, Razor Leaf!"

The green turtle planted his four feet firmly on the ground, and a pulsing, dark energy began to glow around him, making him heavier and stronger. Meanwhile the rose Pokemon put both her buds forward, and with a ragged scream they began to glow, expelling wave after wave of sharp, knife like petals towards them. Barry simply gave her a side look, urging her to do the honors.

"Shadi, use Fury Cutter on Roselia!" she yelled.

"Kitsune, Teleport!" Barry followed.

Gardenia's eyes opened wide. Shadi brandished her two scythes, which began to glow with a pale, maroon energy. The razor petals were still advancing towards them, but the moment before they hit both Pokemon blinked out of existence in an almost imperceptible flash of purple. A  _pop_  later they materialized behind Roselia, who was too slow to react to the incoming attack. Inyssa was only able to hear the impact as the small rose Pokemon went flying through the arena, landing face first into the sand.

"Crap! Turtwig, they're close to you, bite them!" Gardenia screamed.

Turtwig nodded and ran towards his opponents, maw opened wide. However his previous attack had rendered him too slow, and before he could reach them they teleported once again, slipping in between his teeth. Roselia was still trying to get up, her body shaking from the previous attack, when Shadi appeared behind her and with another arc of her scythe sent her up ten feet towards the roof, the power of her attack increasing the more she used it.

"Finish her off!" Inyssa yelled, fists clenched.

The air pressurized around Shadi and Abra, and with another violet flash they appeared on top of their victim, the bug Pokemon's scythe contracting as far back as possible. She had to look away as the impact sent Roselia downwards like a cannonball, raising clouds of sand around her body as she went limp, falling into unconciousness. At the other side of the arena Gardenia's body was frozen, and her mouth went from being slightly open to forming a fiery smile.

"Oh, yes," she said, her voice only a whisper. "That was a pretty nifty strategy, I can tell you two ain't gonna dissapoint me." She returned her Roselia to her Pokeball, and immediatly took another one from her poncho. "But I'm afraid that won't work again. Go, Cherrim!"

Her new Pokemon appeared in the field next to Turtwig, light turning into what appeared to be a purple flower bud with two tiny legs. Inyssa couldn't even see a face or arms on it.

"The hell is that?" she whispered, narrowing her eyes. "I've never seen that Pokemon, it's kind of like a lame version of Bret."

"Looks super weak," Barry concluded. "Just focus the Turtwig! Come on, before he has time to buff himself even more."

Inyssa thought about it for a second, her eyes still set on that strange Pokemon. Gardenia wouldn't have sent it if he wasn't useful, but then again what could something so small do to them? She decided to go with Barry's plan, for now the turtle was the clear target to attack.

"Fury Cutter again!" she ordered her Pokemon, a speck of doubt in her voice.

Shadi brandished her scythes once more, and being the fourth time she used the same attack the energy emanating from them began to shake the ground beneath her. The Kricketune set her eyes on her opponent, and with a small jump she pushed herself towards him.

"Turtwig, Sunny Day, before she reaches you!" Gardenia shouted.

The turtle Pokemon raised his head towards the sky, and with a deep roar he gathered energy in a small, grey ball inside his maw, launching it upwards with extreme force. Inyssa couldn't help but follow the trajectory of it, and she witnessed as the strange attack penetrated the clouds above. For a short moment nothing happened, and she entertained the idea that the attack had failed, but before she got her hopes up the sky started clearing, all the clouds on top of the stadium dissapearing and letting space free for strong rays of sunlight to fall into the arena.

Which didn't particularly help the Turtwig after Shadi and Kitsume teleported in front of him and wrecked him with a single hit, his body flying backwards and almost breaking the stone of the wall. He landed with a deaf  _thomp_  and altough that had been the strongest slash from Shadi yet, the small Pokemon wasn't unconcious yet due to his fortified defenses. She was about to order another attack when Barry interrupted her.

"Whoa, what's that thing doing!?"

Confused she looked at what Barry was pointing at. The Cherrim was slowly opening the petals on his body, dark purple turning into a bright rosey color as he revealed his true form, two tiny pink arms coming out from inside the bud and finally showing his round, cute face. Inyssa stood in surprise for a few seconds, head leaned to the side.

"Do you like this cutie over here?" Gardenia asked, smug smile on her face. "Cherrim's ability lets him change his form when under strong sunlight, and it gives him a whole lotta speed and power!" she explained, arms crossed and pride in her voice. "Oh and trust me, that's not the only trick this little guy has..."

Barry and Inyssa looked at each other, and she could see the uncertainty on his face. She mentally cursed their lack of experience, and her mind began to race trying to think of the possible implications of Gardenia's words. Whatever she meant with that, it didn't matter. As long as they had that powerful teleport combo on their side they had everything under control.

"Fury Cutter one more time!" she yelled, trying to get it over with as soon as possible.

"I already told you that won't work again," Gardenia replied, voice melodious. "Cherrim, Solar Beam!"

The Gym Leader greatly enjoyed the look of horror on the kid's faces as they realized what they'd walked into. Inyssa's heart dropped as she witnessed the flower Pokemon slowly raising from the floor upwards, a tremendous amount of solar energy gathering around his body until he looked like a miniature sun. She wanted to yell to Shadi to hurry and attack immediatly, but before the words left her mouth it was already too late.

The flash of light blinded her. Even without being able to see anything she felt the tremor in her bones while the ground of the arena shook violently as if an earthquake were happening under them. Dust covered the entire place, extending towards them like mist, and she had to force her vision to finally find their Pokemon.

Both Shadi and Kitsume laid on the sand, face down. The Abra was completely still, unconscious, while her Pokemon was weakly trying to get up, her resistance to grass moves being the only reason she was still standing. Her red body was covered in burn marks and a few drops of blood fell to the ground under her.

Of course, how could she forget about Solar Beam? It was one of the strongest grass moves in existence, and while it usually took a long time to charge, under such strong sunlight that disadvantage had completely dissapeared.

"That... was amazing!" Barry grabbed his hair, a crazy laugh coming from him. "Niss did you see that? I've never seen that attack in action, it looked just like one of those cool attacks in anime!"

"Barry, shut up!" she snapped at him, her brain still trying to think of a strategy. "Listen, do you have your Buizel?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah," he took one of his newest Pokeballs from his belt. "But he's water type, I don't think he'll get much done here."

"Just trust me," she approached him, and whispered something in his ear. "... did you get that?"

He nodded, and pointed Kitsume's Pokeball towards his body, "Yeah! That sounds like a good plan." The small fox Pokemon came back to him, and he threw the new one towards the field. "Razen, come out!"

The orange Pokemon materialized on the field, arms crossed. His resolve seemed to falter at the sight of what he had to face, but only for a moment.

Inyssa looked at Shadi, who had just finished getting up and was now breathing deeply and unevenly, barely conscious. She thought her plan through three more times, and while she admitted it wasn't perfect they really didn't have that many choices.

"Wow, thanks for bringing my Cherrim a free snack there, boy!" Gardenia shouted from the other side. "Solar Beam one more time!"

Once again the flower Pokemon flew upwards, his body glistening with the energy of the sun. Inyssa bit her lip, she had no time to think anymore.

"Shadi, use Fury cutter, but don't attack anyone!" the words felt crazy coming out of her mouth, and her Pokemon's expression told her she shared the sentiment. "Just trust me, charge the attack and turn towards your partner!"

The Kricketune did as she was told, and only with a bit of hesitation she turned towards Razen, putting her scythe hands in front of her in an X shape. Being the fifth time she used the attack consecutively the power was stronger than ever, so much that Shadi was having problem containing it in her body.

"Razen, it's your turn," Barry told his Pokemon, "Water Gun at Shadi!"

The Buizel inhaled deeply before expeling a small torrent of water from his mouth heading directly at the bug Pokemon. Inyssa couldn't help but smile at Gardenia's bewildered face, and she mentally crossed her fingers for this to work. The moment Razen's attack hit Shadi the water started dissipating, turning to steam due to the incredible amount of energy in her hands. A cloud of mist rose from her exhausted body and filled the entire stadium, blocking everyone's view and rising towards the open roof, where it hid the light of the sun and cancelled Cherrim's attack.

"Oh you clever little shits." Gardenia whispered, not being able to contain a laugh. "Nice, very nice."

The light dissapeared from the Cherrim's body. The flower Pokemon fell to the ground and painfully started to squirm, not being able to contain his true form anymore. The petals behind his head started contracting once again until it fully covered his body, now making him look the same as when he came out of his Pokeball.

"Shadi quick, attack them before the steam dissolves!" Inyssa ordered.

Only half concious and with ragged breath the Kricketune turned towards the Cherrim and Turtwig, now standing ahead of her like easy targets. The power from her previous attack was still on her scythes, and without moving an inch she formed an X once again, and took a deep breath. Mist gathered around her feet like a tiny hurricane and pressure started bulding in her hands.

"That... doesn't look like Fury Cutter," Barry leaned forward, furrowed brow.

"It's not," Inyssa lifted her head and let out a small chuckle, "it's X Scissor."

Shadi looked backwards once, and her eyes met with that of Inyssa's. She could see her mustache twitching into a weak smile, pride shining in her eyes. She didn't understand Pokemon language, but Inyssa could see a  _Thanks_  in that gaze. Without hesitating the Kricketune slashed the air in front of her, and a cross shaped projectile of green energy flew towards Gardenia's Pokemon, leaving a trail of sand on its path. Cherrim and Turtwig desperately tried to run away, but they were too slow and the attack too powerful. The impact raised another cloud of dust as both Pokemon hit the ground, not being able to fight anymore.

In the midst of those moments Inyssa could swear she heard a weak, proud laugh coming from Shadi, just before her body collapsed. She put a hand on her chest, a warm feeling growing inside her, and walking towards her she pointed at her with her Pokeball.

"You did so, so well," she whispered, her nose crinkling. "Good job."

"Oh man!" Gardenia raised both arms to the sky, and to Inyssa it seemed like she was enjoying the battle a little too much. "Gotta admit, it's been a while since I had to fight this hard against a couple of children. You two are wonderful, I'm kinda sad this is almost over!" She returned both Pokemon to their respective balls, and with a bit of fanfare she took the last one out of her pockets. "But this has gone on for too long and I do have other challengers, so I'm afraid I'll have to cut this short."

Gardenia punched the air in front of her, Pokeball in hand, and it opened up on a flash of light which dropped to the floor, forming an unfamiliar shape. Her last Pokemon was almost as tall as her, slim and shiny green, with white hair and what looked like two rose bouquets on his hands. His mouth was covered with a green bandana and a red scarf was tied around his neck, flowing with the cold wind. He looked quite similar to the Roselia she'd summoned before, but just different enough to raise Inyssa's suspicions.

"Say hello to Roserade," Gardenia introduced her Pokemon, raising her head and forming a thin smile. "He will be ending this battle now."

Inyssa froze for a second, not sure of what to do. If that thing was Roselia's evolution then it must mean it was a fully evolved Pokemon, and she remembered too well what happened the last time she faced against one of those. Her eyes drifted upwards to her hat, where Steven was still sitting, a nervous expression on his tiny face. She was planning on using him for this battle, but now...

The small bird Pokemon hadn't evolved yet, something he should've done already according to her estimates. He was too weak to fight something like that, and she knew that if that thing got a single hit on Barry's Buizel the water Pokemon would be defeated instantly. Maybe she could use Enma just this once, she thought. She would have time to train Steven later, she didn't have to...

She felt the weight of Shadi's Pokeball in her hand, and she looked down toward it. She remembered how weak she had been when Inyssa found her at the door of that Pokemon Center. If she'd never given her a chance, would she have become as strong as she was now?

"Steven, it's your turn," she said "Are you up for it?"

She heard Enma's sneer behind her, but she decided to ignore it. Steven awkwardly shifted his body a couple times, and finally jumped off her hat, extending his wings and flying towards the arena, his eyebrows knit together in worry. She felt a nod in her stomach, still not sure if she was making the right choice, but it was too late to back down now.

"Our best bet is rushing that thing as fast as possible," she told both Pokemon and Barry, attempting to sound more confident than she was. "Use Aerial Ace!"

"Razen, Aqua Jet!" Barry joined her scream, fist punching forward.

The Buizel moved like lightning, his orange body flashing forward and blurring into a smear as he rushed to attack the Roserade. With a scream his body covered itself with water, and before his opponent had time to dodge he lodged himself at his stomach, toppling him backwards and making him lose his balance. Above them Steven soared to their location, his wings sharp as knives. The impact finally managed to knock the Roserade down to the floor, where he let out a simple sigh of pain, receiving only moderate damage from those attacks.

"One attack that never misses and another one that always strikes first," Gardenia spoke under her breath. "Well, I think I know which one I should take care of first. Roserade, use Energy Ball on the Starly!"

Roserade stood up almost instantly, his tiny legs dancing through the sand beneath him like a ballerina. He raised the hand that contained the blue roses and pointed it towards Steven; a vibrant, pulsing orb of green energy formed in front of him, easily twice the size as the target of such attack. The bird Pokemon watched this and started flying in circles around the arena, panic dictating his actions. But the Roserade was calm, and without moving an inch he aimed at a particular spot in the air, and fired.

Inyssa stared, her eyes opened wide as the ball of energy made direct contact, exploding upon touch with Steven's body and blowing him out of the sky. His wings lost strenght, and he dived towards the left extreme of the arena falling onto the floor,. Her brain took a couple seconds to register what had happened, and part of her hoped that she would see her Pokemon stand up defiantly like Shadi had. But the Starly was motionless, only his chest moving up and down slowly, mirroring his irregular breathing.

"Holy... oh my gosh," Barry whispered at her side, his lower lip trembling. "But... shouldn't he resist that attack? Energy Ball is grass type, right?"

She didn't answer, not that she would've been able to. She could feel ice in her throat and a shiver in her spine as the realization came to her.

She'd lost the fight.

"Don't worry Niss, I'll avenge him!" Barry tried to reassure her, and immediatly turned towards the fight. "Razen, Aqua Jet again!"

But Inyssa wasn't paying attention. With weakness weighing her down she slowly raised the hand with Steven's Pokeball in it and returned him to it. She stared directly at it, the sounds of the fight booming around her, and she couldn't help but feel a pint of irritation. No, she thought, Steven wasn't at fault for that, she was the one who sent him to a losing battle. But then again she had thought that type advantage would tip the scale on his favor, and she could never imagine he would go down so easily against an attack he resisted. Shame creeped up on her at the thought of how angry she felt, and she mentally cursed herself for it. She would not put the blame of her failures on anyone else, even if...

She chased all thoughts away from inside her head and saved the Pokeball in her belt, turning towards the battle once more. To her surprise the Buizel was still holding his own against the powerful grass Pokemon, his quick feet being only barely enough for him to avoid most of his attacks.

"Alright this isn't working, I think we need a change of strategy," Gardenia spoke to herself, a hand on her chin. "Use Grass Knot on him!"

The Roserade put both hands in the floor, inbuing it with power. The ground shook, and all around the Buizel it broke apart, dozens of small vines slithering towards the him. It was sudden enough to catch him off guard, and one of the vines grabbed him by the ankle, grounding him. Three others soon followed, spiraling around his torso and his other leg, inmovilizing his body. Without needing orders the Roserade aimed his flowery hand towards Razen and shot another Energy Ball. The attack flew at him like a cannonball.

"Razen, Sonic Boom on the vines!" Barry screamed, rushing his words.

The Buizel allowed himself a coy smile as he spun, his two tails glistening with power and cutting all the vines binding him. With only moments to spare he inhaled deeply, shooting a torrent of water into the ground, propelling himself high enough to avoid the Energy Ball, which kept traveling forward and dissipated into the air.

"That was so sick!" Barry jumped in place excitedly. "Aqua Jet one more time!"

In mid air the Buizel set his eyes on his opponent, and with a powerful slap of his tails he boosted himself towards him, his body covering itself once more with water. The Roserade tried to side-step it but Razen had much more control over his trajectory thanks to gravity being on his side, and with a powerful impact he hit the grass Pokemon directly in the stomach, burying part of him in the sand. Inyssa feared he would get up any moment and destroy the Buizel, but Roserade's body stood still, now unconcious.

A few second of silence passed, and then claps started sounding all around the stadium, the people in the stands cheering and yelling at Barry and his Pokemon for achieving victory. Gardenia contemplated the result for a moment, and after returning her last Pokemon to his ball she started walking towards them, a proud smile on her face.

"I... I did it!" Barry yelled in a high pitched voice. "Niss! Niss did you see that? I won! I won with type disadvantage against Gardenia!"

She forced herself to give Barry a smile that didn't extend to her eyes. She wanted to be happy for him, she wanted to go towards him and give him a hug, but her mind was elsewhere. The image of failure danced inside her head, becoming more prominent the more she tried not to think about it.

"That was amazing," she spoke, plain voice, "good job, Barry."

A persistent clap noise approached them, and they both turned around to see Gardenia and Sarah near them, the first with a reddish face and breathing quickly, and the other one calm and reassuring, her expression that of pride.

"I can't thank you kids enough for that," the Gym leader performed a short bow, only half sarcastically. "That was intense! It's been a long time since I got such a challenge from novice trainers. I can still feel my heart throbbing in my chest!" She put both hands on her face, eyes closed and a blush on her cheeks. Inyssa and Barry almost took a step back out of concern alone. Was she a different person from the Gardenia they'd met last night?

"Yes... quite," Sarah coughed, slightly perplexed by her partner's behaviour. "A very impressive display, I have to say."

Inyssa had to supress a laugh at the sight of that, and after giving Barry a side glance their eyes met, and she was pretty sure they had a brief mental conversation.

 _She's hot,_  Barry's body language seemed to say.

 _Hell yeah she is,_  Inyssa's eyes replied.

Gardenia finally composed herself; slightly ashamed she approached both trainers, and with a flick of her wrist she took something from her poncho.

"As proof of your mastery over this establishment, I hereby... uh..." she frowned, "damn, I forgot the speech I was supposed to say. Anyway, here are your Forest Badges."

She handed them both a small, metal emblem with the shape of three rhombuses stuck together, emerald stones filling the insides of them, making them look like trees. The badge sat on Inyssa's right hand, feeling a lot heavier than it was.

"But I lost the battle," she couldn't help to say, a knot in her stomach. "Maybe I shouldn't..."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Gardenia's yell made her jump in place. "A double battle is a pact between two trainers, and if one of them wins, then both of them do. You pulled your weight wonderfully at the start of the battle, hell your Kricketune took out three of my Pokemon!" she yelled with a decisive tone. "And while your Starly went down quickly, his Aerial Ace was still paramount to this victory."

"Yeah Niss, come on! I couldn't have done it without you," Barry gave her back a pat strong enough to sting. "Also I'm now tied with you on points, so it wouldn't be benefitial for me if you fought her again and won."

She adjusted her hat, slightly misplaced by Barry's enthusiastic pat, and tried to hide a smile. Her thoughts were still cloudy and dark, but she figured she'd have time to figure them out later. Now it was time to celebrate.

"Thanks," she whispered, voice barely audible.

Sarah put her hands together, smiling widely, "This definitely deserves a prize for both of you. I have a few hours free so we might as well take advantage of that. How does a meal on the Smokey Camerupt sound? We can order a nice barbeque, and if you get bored the Game Corner is only a block away."

"Damn, that sounds good," Gardenia put a finger on her chin, contemplatively. "Mind if I join you later? After I get through my work shift of course."

"Yeah! That sounds great mom!" Barry bumped her on the shoulder, laugh on his eyes. "Right Niss?"

Inyssa closed her eyes for a moment, allowing herself a weak smile.

"Yeah, that would be lovel..."

The ground shook beneath her. Only a little bit, a simple  _burr_  which escalated from the sand beneath her to her feet, and then through her entire body. She froze for a second, mouth still open, and looked up to the people around her. Both Sarah and Gardenia blinked confusedly, and next to her Barry had stopped moving in place.

"What was that?" Sarah spoke, her voice cracking slightly. "Did you feel..."

She felt the explosion in her bones before she heard it. The resulting force of it caught her off guard, making her fall backwards towards the sand. She felt the vibrations in the floor beneath her hands and the powerful sound deafened her for a moment, throwing her mind into disarray. Screams rung around her as the kids in the Gym started to yell and the lights of the floor turned off, now only the sunlight above them lighting the place. A hand grabbed her by the shoulder and helped her up, her eyes still spinning. When she could see clearly once more Barry's face appeared in front of hers, his previous smile gone and replaced with an expression of fear.

"What the fuck!?" She heard Gardenia scream in front of her.

"What was that?" Sarah's face appeared at her side, contorted into a mask of confusion and anxiety. "It felt like..." her voice slowly dissipated as she looked upwards, eyes opening as wide as they could."Oh no..."

Inyssa followed her eyes, and she couldn't help but gasp at the sight. From the open roof of the arena she could see a dark pillar of smoke being carried by the wind, coming from the north of town. It looked eerilly similar to the one she'd seen when she was flying towards Floaroma. A myriad of images and colors flashed in her eyes, from the pink of Metchi's hair to the cold red of Mars' eyes, back in the Windworks. The rational part of her mind told her there was no way it was happening again, they would not be stupid enough to attack Eterna City while both the Association's police and the Gym leader were nearby, it was probably just an unrelated incident.

"Galactic..." the word came out of her mouth without her realizing it, dissapearing into the commotion around her.

Her body moved on its own, and Inyssa ran towards the exit as fast as she could, her mind a hurricane of thoughts and Sarah's worried scream ringing in her ears.


	15. Galactic Trouble

In the most remote, far back part of her mind Inyssa felt lucky that her legs started moving on their own. Her mind was currently struggling between a myriad of different emotions that would've frozen her if she were actually thinking about what her body was doing.

Once again the pillar of smoke had gotten in her way, erasing all the warmth she'd been feeling back in the Gym. But now she knew what it meant, she knew what that augur was attached to, the name which clung to her chest and burnt her from the inside. Galactic.

Her vision was blurry, though she didn't know if it was due to the speed at which she was running towards that smoke or the strong, uniform beating of her heart. She closed her eyes for a second and she saw her face, Mars' face, grinning at her the same way she'd done it back in the Windworks. Those cold red eyes and those thin lips that couldn't have created a warm smile if she were forced to. She felt that chill again, that debilitating, all consuming fear that Mars instilled in her that time. Like cold poison running through her veins, paralyzing her limbs and stealing her breath.

But there was something else too. Pulsing, growing from her heart outwards, like an ember being fanned by a light breeze. It started to boil inside her, a white, furious flame which heated her entire body and burnt the fear away, chasing it to the back of her mind where it would not interfere with her current plan of action.

She would find her, she decided, and she would break that stupid tiny nose of hers. Perhaps a few other things too, if the opportunity presented itself to her. The thought made her smile, or at the very least twitch the corner of her lips slightly upwards. She was going to make her feel the same thing she felt back then, she was going to...

Her legs stopped, feet sliding on the floor beneath her and almost making her fall. Her body was jerked backwards, an iron grip grabbing her by the right arm and nearly dislocating her shoulder again. The air inside her lungs escaped as she came back to reality, and with a confused expression she turned around to see Sarah, her face red and her eyes spelling out a clear  _Don't even think about it_.

Behind her appeared Barry, hair ruffled and cheeks red. Inyssa opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. She felt a painful stab in her chest and she suddenly realized she needed to breathe. Closing her eyes she inhaled as quickly as possible, her legs burning and the beat of her heart resounding in her ears.

 _Right,_  she thought to herself,  _I'm as fit as a Snorlax._

"Let... me... go," she said between gasps.

"No. Absolutely not," Sarah squeezed her arm painfully. "You're both going back to the Pokemon Center while I take care of this."

She looked towards Barry, who was staring at both of them full of doubt, the fear of his mother slightly overpowering his desire to help her. She frowned at him.

"It's... it's them. Team Galactic," she explained, voice slightly high pitched. "I have to go."

"We don't know that," Sarah cut her down, eyebrows knit together. "And even if that were the case..."

A beeping sound filled the air, coming from Sarah's wrist. Everyone's attention was drawn to the Pokétch as she lifted it up and answered the call.

"Sarah, we need your assistance north of town!" It was a grumbled voice, panic clear on its tone. "There was another explosion in the Energy Research Lab, three blocks behind the Pokemon Center! We believe it might be Team Galactic's doing!"

Sarah would've facepalmed if her hands weren't busy already.

"Great timing, jackass," she whispered to herself before she put the Pokétch close to her mouth. "Sarah Paladino here! Transmitting on all Association frequencies; any agents in Eterna City must head directly to the building where the explosion took place. Don't do anything until I arrive, I'm already on my way!"

Inyssa stared daggers at Barry's mother, her expression a mix between  _See? I told you so_  and  _Can you just let me go already? There's a redhead who needs to be punched in the face_ , though she didn't know if Sarah picked up on the nuances of her gaze.

"It's too dangerous," Sarah told her. "Let us take care of it, we'll apprehend them."

"I know what they look like, I can identify one of their leaders!" she tried to explain. "And I can help with my Pokemon if they want to start a fight."

"I'm not letting you go near terrorists Inyssa! How do you think I'd feel if something were to happen to you?" The woman put both hands on her shoulders, and she immediately recoiled. "Please, let this go. Don't go near these people, it won't accomplish anything."

"They killed my Pokemon!" her scream rang through the entire street, hurting her throat. "And you want me to just let it go!? Fuck that!"

Silence fell on them as Inyssa and Sarah stared each other down, eyes firm and unwavering. She would never admit it, but she was struggling not to shake under the woman's heavy gaze. This continued for about five seconds before Barry spoke.

"Okay, let's all calm down," he put both hands in the air and Inyssa almost laughed at the ridiculousness of him being the one to say that. Almost. "Mom, you had a lot of people here in town, right? There's no way they'll be a problem for you, so if we go with you it's gonna be safe for us!"

"Even then..." Sarah started speaking before being interrupted.

"Sarah, please!" she begged, all semblances of pride going out the window. "I... I have to go. I have to prove that I'm not scared of them. I have to..." she couldn't find the words, and for a moment she felt the fear come back, "I... I have to..."

Sarah looked at her with a raised eyebrow, her lips thin as a line. Inyssa could see the gears turning inside her head, considering her options.

"You will both stay behind me. At all times," she pointed first at Barry, and then at her. She was talking slowly and clearly, "and you will obey every order I give you. If you don't then I swear to God I will rip your trainer cards in half myself. Understood?"

They both nodded energetically.

"Follow me."

 

* * *

 

 

The question in her mind just before they reached the building was  _How the hell do these two have so much stamina?_ Sarah and Barry ran through the streets like two Tauros, as fast and elegant as she was slow and awkward. By the time they arrived at the crime scene she could feel her heart beating like a drum inside her chest, while the two Paladinos hadn't even broken a sweat.

The laboratory was half a street wide and two stories tall, being mostly glass and a few foundations of stone and steel. On top of the roof was a giant, square sign with the strange logo of the Energy Research Lab; a yellow, angular "G" with black borders. It would've been a cool building if there weren't a giant, smoking hole in the middle of it.

Where the door should've been now lay only a freshly created entrance thanks to the previous explosion. Bricks and pieces of glass adorned the front of it and it was impossible to see inside due to the slowly dissipating smoke coming out of it. Sarah took a single glance at the place, and immediately went towards the side of the lab, where six people were waiting. They were all dressed in similarly blue outfits with thick clothing and even a bulletproof vest around them. Sarah addressed the one who was closest to her, a short man with black hair.

"Where is everyone else?" she questioned him, hands behind her back.

"They're on their way, miss!" the man gave her a salute, his voice nervous. "But they will not arrive for at least fifteen minutes."

"We don't have time to wait for them," she concluded. "We'll have to go inside with the people we have now. These two..." she pointed at Inyssa and Barry with her head, "...will follow behind us and help if needed. Our numbers should be enough to find and apprehend any culprits without trouble.

"Two of you will stay out here to make sure no one exits or enters the place," she continued, and then looked at two of the armed people in front of her. One of them was a tall, fit man with brown hair and a shadow of a beard, while the other one was a short, dark haired girl with a big frown on her face, "Kyle, Zofia, that's you. Everyone else will follow me inside."

"Yes sir!" Kyle nodded strongly, a speck of sarcasm on his voice.

"Fine by me." Zofia whispered under her breath, crossing her arms.

"Alright, we're moving in," Sarah turned towards the ruined building, and indescribable look on her face. "Let's go!"

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa had to cover her mouth as they penetrated through the wall of smoke at the building's entrance, the smell of soot and ash and whatever chemical engineers used to keep bricks together making her nose itch. To her right Barry followed her steps, his fingers tapping the side of his pants quickly as if the boy needed to expel his energy some way. In front of her all she could see was Sarah and her four companions as they slowly walked forward, their hands firmly grasping some heavy looking black pistols.

Her heart made a jump when she felt everyone in front of her stopping, their steps coming to a sudden but unanimous halt. She waited for a few seconds until finally Sarah spoke, her voice tinted with confusion.

"What is this?" she whispered.

She had to force her vision between two people to see what was the problem, Barry resting his hands on top of her shoulders, trying to do the same. The room they walked into seemed like a normal office lobby, various sofas and chairs at the side walls, a small but elegant fountain in the middle and the receptionist's table at the other end of it. It looked awfully familiar to the Windworks, Inyssa thought, and she tried not to let that fact fill her mind with fear again. Her eyes kept exploring the room, until she finally found what had surprised everyone. Near the elevators and the staircases leading to the different rooms were three bodies laying on the floor, completely immobile.

They were Galactic grunts. There was no question about it, they were all wearing that same stupid body suit which made them look like rejected space men.

Barry let out a breathy  _Huh_?, "Wait, why are they on the floor? Weren't they the ones who made that explosion?"

"I wonder..." Sarah spoke, a hand on her chin, "all the debris and glass seems to be on the inside of the building, which would indicate that the explosion came from the outside. Perhaps someone trying to forcefully enter..."

Inyssa stared at the place, her mind working overtime trying to think of the possibilities. If Team Galactic was already inside before the explosion happened, then who caused it?

"I don't understand… where are all the scientists?" Sarah asked herself, her brow furrowed. "The trail of bodies seems to go down." She pointed towards the staircase at the other extreme of the room, which lead to what Inyssa imagined would be the basement. "We'll explore there first. Everyone stay close to each other!"

She felt everyone's stomps inside her head as they advanced, a nervous feeling growing in her chest and making her hands tremble. She was not alone, she had to remind herself. There were five trained professionals in front of her, not to mention Barry at her side, his bright almond eyes giving her the strength she needed. She had no reason to be scared; even if Mars was somewhere around, not even she would have a chance to hurt her again. She felt a shiver in her stomach, in the exact place Mars had buried her fist in that time, but she forced herself to ignore it.

The steps were made of pure stone, and the railways at the side felt cold and painful to the touch. She started biting her lip as they went down, feeling them dry, and she really wished the beating of her heart would stop being so honest about how she felt. Didn't it know she had a reputation to uphold?

"I hear something." Sarah whispered, although it was enough to almost make Inyssa jump. "Someone's talking down there. Quick."

The end of the staircase opened up to a narrow hallway heading to another huge room, so they all had to squeeze through to pass, the bodies of the people in front of her completely blocking her vision. She could see both sides of the door laying on the floor, their metal frames bent into strange shapes as if someone had took them out with their own hands.

Sarah was right, but only partly. What they thought were whispers slowly started to sound like whimpers and moans as they approached the giant room, Inyssa's teeth shaking from the sound. When they finally were able to cross to the other side, she almost couldn't believe what she saw.

The room was enormous, easily the size of a small cathedral. Concrete and metal covered the walls and ceiling, and the look of it told Inyssa that the place wasn't meant to be seen by people not working there. A couple feet from them the floor turned into a wide metal bridge, under which lay a jungle of wires and cables running towards the gigantic machine on the other side of the room. From afar she could clearly see it, standing at least ten feet tall and glowing with a strange white light. Two people were standing close to it, their shapes that of a young woman and an old man, and next to them was a large Pokemon that she couldn't see quite clearly. But that wasn't what caught her attention. In the middle of the bridge, hands on the floor and slightly panting, was another person. A familiar girl, tall and with pink hair falling to her shoulders. Inyssa's heart made a slight jump at the sight of her.

"Metchi!?" her voice betrayed her, making everyone on the room turn towards them.

"Whoa! What is she doing here!?" Barry's voice followed, having to almost jump on top of one of Sarah's coworkers to see her properly.

The girl slowly turned her head towards them, and Inyssa would've laughed at her horrified expression if she weren't on the floor and bleeding.

She let out a chuckle that sounded like a sob, "Oh great, it's you two."

With one hand she helped herself to her feet, the other one holding her own stomach, where blood was slowly running through her fingers. The cloth around it was stained in red, and from the looks of it the wound seemed somewhat serious. Behind her laid the unconscious body of a Scyther, the blade on its left arm stained with the girl's blood.

Looking up her eyes set on the three figures next to the strange machine, two of which were facing their way. One of them was a woman, tall and slim, wearing the same body suit that Mars had when she encountered her, minus the short skirt. Her hair was dark purple, long and being held by two crescent shaped buns, and her lips were painted maroon. Her hands were set on her wide hips, quickly tapping her fingers on them, and her expression was that of someone dealing with a slight, annoying inconvenience. Behind her stood a short man with a slight hunchback and grey, colorless hair who was currently typing something on the keyboard at the base of the machine, and to his right there was that Pokemon that she could now identify as an Alakazam. His slim arms were extended forward towards them, two giant spoons on his hands and his eyes glowing blue.

Barry didn't waste a second. He broke formation and ran toward Metchi, kneeling next to her.

"What happened to you?" he asked, his hands moving around as if he didn't know what to do. "Are you okay? Wow that's a lot of blood."

"Smooth," Inyssa followed him with caution, her eyes still set on the Galactic people in front of them.

Sarah let out an annoyed sigh, and with a flick of her hand she ordered her agents to keep their eyes on the targets, ready to fire. She walked towards Metchi and the kids, her gaze cold and calculating.

"Do you two know this girl?" she asked with firm tone, as if she expected the entire room to listen to her. "Who are you? What happened here?"

Metchi stood still, her head tilted to the side and her expression unreadable. She heard everyone's questions slowly, and after a few seconds she finally opened her mouth.

"I need a fucking smoke." She whispered, eyes almost closed.

The strange woman at the other side of the room stomped her foot on the ground, her cheeks going red.

"Yeah Metchi, why don't you tell them everything you filthy narc!" her voice wavered between volumes as if she were slightly drunk. "Are these your new friends you betrayed us for!?"

Metchi simply gave the woman a look Inyssa wouldn't have liked to be on the other part of.

"I hate you," she stated plainly, "I hate you so much."

Sarah raised her hand with an open palm, and suddenly all her agents drew their guns and pointed them at the purple haired woman. Her eyes were tired and cold and Inyssa could see she was not joking around.

"I assume you two belong to Team Galactic..." she spoke, her hand still raised, "I will need you to come here with your hands behind your head. You are charged with acts of terrorism, theft and murder, and you will be judged by the Sinnoh League Association. Give up willingly or we will be forced to make you."

"Are you... serious?" Metchi helped herself up with Barry's aid, and Inyssa couldn't tell if she was angry or just in a lot of pain. "Just shoot them! You have them right here!"

"That is not how it works." Sarah spat back at her, surprised by the girl's nerve. "I can't use lethal force unless certain conditions..."

"They're going to get away!" she interrupted her, desperation clear in her eyes. "Jupiter's just buying time until they can teleport out of here, and if Charon gets all that energy they're..."

"Stop spilling out our plans you piece of shit!" the woman Inyssa assumed was Jupiter screame. "See? It's exactly that kind of attitude that earned you being slashed in the stomach!"

"Okay, that's enough, I'm done with this." Sarah took a step forward, and extended her hand towards the two strangers. "Bring those two to me!"

The four agents in front of Inyssa advanced towards them with swift steps, weapons at the side of their bodies even though their postures told her that they were ready to shoot at a moment's notice. She barely had time to think about the possibility of releasing one of her Pokemon to help when a purple flash filled the room. The first person to get to the other side of the bridge stopped to a halt, his body being momentarily paralyzed as he flew backwards through the room, landing a few feet back. Another one soon followed, and the other two agents simply stopped, confusion clear in their eyes.

"There's... a barrier there," Metchi had to put her right arm around Barry's neck as to not fall again, while her left was covering her abdomen. The boy was struggling with trying to keep her on her feet. "The Alakazam put it... just before you arrived."

"And you couldn't have told us before because..." Sarah frowned, the veins in her neck now slightly visible.

"Hey leave me alone, I'm bleeding out over here," Metchi complained, hand still covered in red. "Besides, I told you idiots to shoot them didn't I?"

"I already told you!" Sarah lowered her gun and started to yell at the girl, her face turning red. "I can't shoot at civilians unless..."

"Fine! You want a fucking incentive!?" She leaned so strongly on Barry that the boy's face started to get pale. "Then look at what's behind the damn machine!"

Everyone's heads turned towards the Galactic commanders, silence forcing its way into the room for a few seconds. Jupiter froze at everyone's gaze, a drop of sweat running down her forehead.

"Ah, shit," she whispered.

Inyssa set foot on the metal bridge, trying to get a better look at it. It was hard to make out, due to the machine's impressive frame and the light it was emitting covering most of what was behind it. But it almost looked like... grates? Metal grilles covered the opposite wall entirely, and for a moment she thought it might have been used to cool down the machine, but the bars seemed to be... shaking. She forced her vision, furrowing her brow a bit to make up what was behind them. Tiny shapes, all of different colors. They were moving, squirming and...

Her shoulders dropped as she realized what was behind those bars. She could see a tiny, furry arm hopelessly attempting to escape with almost vacant strength.

"Oh my goodness." Sarah's tone gave her chills, a mix of shock, disbelief and a terrible, cold rage.

"Are those Pokemon!?" Barry yelled at the top of his lungs, eyes opened wide. He almost dropped Metchi to the ground.

Inyssa could only nod, any other form of communication being impossible for her at the moment. She could make up the appearances of many different Pokemon behind those cages, and with every one she identified the flame in her stomach grew, swallowing her whole. A Clefairy was holding tight to the metal trapping her, meekly attempting to shake it open; a pale Growlithe laid on his stomach, his weeping cries turning her veins to ice. Gloom, Vulpix, Pikachu and even a couple Eevee all adorned the back of the machine like a twisted painting, it's canvas that of the sinister machine which was glowing menacingly with energy. Strange cables were attached to different parts of the Pokemon's bodies.

Just when anger was about to take her over and force her to say some less than flattering things to Jupiter, all the Pokemon in the cages started glowing. Their forms surrounded themselves with a blinding white light as their bodies started to expand slowly. Inyssa couldn't help but form a minuscule smile at the sight of that. They were evolving, they were going to escape and...

An electric buzz resounded through the room and the Pokemon started screaming. A debilitating, screeching sound which froze her body and bounced inside her head, forcing her to block her ears with her hands. The powerful glow dissipated slowly as the Pokemon turned back to their original forms, collapsing onto the floor of their cages once more, their breathing ragged and their bodies shaking.

"Well... this is certainly awkward..." Jupiter scratched her cheek. "Uh... Charon? How long until we can get out of here?"

The old man behind her stopped operating the machine for a moment, and with a side glance she gave the woman an irritated look, his thick half moon glasses covering part of his eyes.

"A couple more minutes," he stated, voice low and raspy. "Stop interrupting me, this is extremely delicate equipment!"

What took Inyssa out of her stupor was a slight movement at the side of her hip. One of her Pokeballs attached to her belt shook strongly, as if what was inside were attempting to escape. A simple glance told her that said Pokeball belonged to that strange ghost Pokemon she'd caught recently. But she had no time to worry about that; without missing a bit she looked once more towards the Galactic commanders.

"What are you doing to them!?" the scream came out of her mouth without her realizing, her throat hurting from the effort.

"They're... forcing them to evolve with evolutionary stones," Metchi's voice carried a sort of sad acceptance, as if that answer didn't surprise her at all, "and they're stopping the process by hurting them. They want... the energy..."

Inyssa's stomach revolted at the sound of that, her insides turning into mush and making her want to vomit. But in the back of her mind something came to light; a memory, something she'd heard from those Galactic idiots just when she had started her journey. Back in Jubilife, those documents that they'd tried to steal from Rowan, didn't they entail something about this? The energy that Pokemon released when they evolved... she started connecting the dots in her head, and the picture she created wasn't a very pretty one.

"Disgusting..." Sarah's voice took her out of her thoughts, her tone that of disbelief. "Listen to me! Release those Pokemon immediately and give yourselves up! This is your last chance before I open fire!" she yelled with enough force to make even Inyssa scared, although from Jupiter's expression she wasn't as intimidated as nervous.

"Yeah! Let them go before we kick your butt!" Barry took a Pokeball out of his pocket.

Inyssa took a deep breath, trying to contain the fire inside her body. She was trying with all her might not to run directly towards that Jupiter woman and punch her in the face, which wouldn't have worked for a variety of reasons. She had to be pragmatic, she'd get her chance eventually. Her hands went to her oldest Pokeball and she held it in front of her, clenching her hand around it strongly.

"Return those Pokemon to the people they belong to!" she yelled. "And also tell me where that bitch Mars is!"

"Inyssa!" Sarah turned her head towards her, a horrified look on her face. "Language!"

"What!?" She protested. "Am I being too rude to the terrorists!?"

Jupiter tapped her fingers on her temple, biting her lip and switching her gaze between everyone in the room.  She seemed more annoyed than scared, and the older guy behind her didn't even flinch at their words.

"Look, we'll take this energy and after that we'll let these Pokemon go, if that makes you feel better," she spoke jovially, as if she were offering an amazing deal. "Oh, and as for Mars? I have no idea where she is, which I am grateful for. Trust me, if I knew I'd tell you immediately, that way either you or her would die and I'm honestly fine with both those options."

Inyssa's jaw was completely clenched, her teeth hurting from the pressure. How could someone speak so casually about something so horrible? Those Pokemon... were they missing their trainers? Were their trainers even alive? She didn't doubt Team Galactic would be willing to kill someone to take their Pokemon, not after meeting their commanders. The thought almost made her choke from rage, and without hesitation she threw her Pokeball into the air, the light coming out of it quickly materializing into Enma. Barry quickly did the same and released Pedri from his, the penguin Pokemon appearing in front of him ready to fight. Enma shot her a glare full of disdain.

"Look, I know you're an idiot and you're mad about not getting to fight the Gym Leader, but this is really not the time!" She pointed with one hand towards the machine. "I need you to help me with that!"

Enma lazily turned his body until he could see what was behind those cages, and once he realized it his cocky smiled completely disappeared, being replaced with a mix of surprise and rage.

"Exactly," she nodded, sharing the fire's Pokemon anger. "Use Ember on that barrier, we have to get to those two!"

"Pedri, Bubble Beam!" Barry ordered next to her, Metchi's arm still around his body.

Both Pokemon attacked together, torrents of their own elements traveling through the air directly at the Alakazam. The impact shook the basement they were in and part of the barrier seemed to pale for a second, but it immediately returned to its full force. Inyssa frowned, they would need more power than that.

Sarah's scream rung through the room, "Everyone, shoot at the same time!"

The four agents nodded energetically, and with one smooth movement they followed their leader's example, now five guns aimed directly at the barrier separating them from the two Galactic commanders.

"Keep attacking!" Inyssa and Barry ordered at the same time.

Pedri and Enma shot once again walls of fire and water, converging together at their target's location. Around them five shots were heard, slightly hurting Inyssa's ears, but she didn't care. The immense power of their assault almost dissipated the barrier, but the Alakazam managed to keep it up. The psychic Pokemon's face was twisted into an expression of pain as he desperately tried to keep them out. Behind him she could see Jupiter's breathing become heavy, and her eyes widen.

"Charon! I'm not fucking joking!" her voice was tinted with desperation as she put a hand on the old man's shoulder, "just get the energy we have now and let's get out!"

"Agh, insolent child!" she heard his raspy, nasal voice through the noise of the gunshots and Pokemon attacks. "We can't until the vessel is completely filled. I already told you, I only need one more minute!"

"We might not have a minute you old fuck!" she complained, both hands clenched into fists.

Inyssa felt that strange shake in her belt once again, and when she looked down it was still that one Pokeball. Did that ghost Pokemon want to come out? She could certainly use the power, but she wasn't sure it would obey her at all. What if it made everything worse? She looked again towards the barrier, where Alakazam was still holding his own against the barrage of attacks they were throwing at him. She didn't have a choice, if they didn't hurry those two would escape, and she wouldn't let that happen. With fierce determination she took the Pokeball from her belt and threw it into the air, only then realizing she hadn't given that thing a name.

"Attack that Alakazam... uhh... Hao!" She decided it instantly, she would have time to regret that name later. "Use some... electric attack, I guess!"

The ghost Pokemon's strange form appeared in mid air, crackles of electricity jutting out of his body. For the first time since they arrived the old man operating the machine stopped, his arms frozen for a moment as he heard that unique clicking sound. He turned around slowly, eyes wide, and when he set eyes on that thing Inyssa could swear he almost had a heart attack.

"Rotom!?" His voice lost all semblance of calmness it previously held. "How... when did you...!?"

She couldn't help but be confused at the man's words, and everyone else stopped for a moment too, their eyes switching between the ghost Pokemon and him. Hao simply opened his mouth, and from it came a horrible, daunting sound that one could hardly qualify as a roar. Pulses of electricity filled the room as the Pokemon yelled with all its might, forcing everyone to back away from it.

"What the hell is that!?" Jupiter yelled, voice high pitched.

"Curses! Jupiter, quickly, help me seal the vessel!" With a jerk of his body he turned around towards the machine once more, his arms shaking. "Darn brat, where did she find the… no, it doesn't matter. We must get all the energy cooled down before..."

His words were interrupted by a loud crackling sound as the ghost Pokemon began buzzing, his body vibrating as the air around him turned into electricity. With another astounding roar he fired a bolt of lightning at the barrier, the light from the impact momentarily blinding Inyssa. With a deaf scream she covered her face with her palms, her eyes burning. By the time she was able to open them again her vision was slightly blurry, but even then she saw Hao wasn't there anymore. She turned her head around, everyone close to her still getting their bearings, and when she looked towards Jupiter she noticed the psychic barrier was still there.

It happened gradually. First one of the cables under the bridge exploded, sending sparks everywhere and forcing Inyssa and Sarah to back up. Soon followed another and another until the floor under the metal bridge was sending electricity everywhere, making it impossible to pass through. Then the lights started flickering above, as if the power were about to go off. And then he appeared.

The main screen in the front part of the machine changed. From a myriad of numbers and grids which she couldn't possibly hope to understand it changed to a single, still image. The ghost Pokemon's eyes appeared on the other side of that screen, that piercing blue staring down everyone in the room. For a single, still moment the image didn't move, until Hao blinked, and a huge, white smile formed beneath his eyes.

The screen exploded.

"Shit!" Jupiter jumped back from the machine, glass falling around her. "What is that!? What's going on!?"

A simple  _blip_  sound resonated through room as all the cages behind the machine opened up, releasing its prisoners. With desperation a wave of Pokemon started flowing from it, screeching and running towards the exit as they tried to avoid the electrified bridge. She saw a couple Eevee and a Pikachu run past her and towards the staircases.

"No! Not now!" Charon's face was red, his lips trembling and his hands in his hair. "Jupiter, seal the vessel! We'll take what we can get!"

"Uh... yeah, about that..." Jupiter's eyes were fixed in the machine. "The vessel is..."

Inyssa's eyes set on the machine's core, that strange metallic ball which was glowing with a blinding white energy. She couldn't see what was different until she realized it was much brighter than before, to the point where she could barely see the people in front of it. She could feel it too, almost taste it. A powerful, oppressing force flowing from the machine towards her, its intensity growing with every second that passed.

"Something is overflowing the vessel's capacity!" Jupiter rushed towards the machine's controls, desperately hitting the keys. "I can't shut it off! It's going to melt down!"

"Take the core off! Quickly!" Charon tried to help his partner, but a jolt of electricity sent him backwards as soon as he approached the machine. "Agh! I can't get close to it, you have to retrieve the vessel before it's too late!"

"I can't, all the controls are locked! That stupid Pokemon is inside the machine!" Jupiter lifted one of her legs and started kicking the panel in front of it. "Stop! Exploding! You! Fuck!"

Inyssa couldn't move. She simply witnessed as those strange events happened in front of her, no idea how to react to them. Should she attack them? Help them? What did she mean the core was locked? She looked down at Enma, who was as dumbfounded as she was, and then to Barry and Metchi, the latter of which was barely conscious.

"Charon, this thing is going to explode any second now!" Jupiter said, her voice filled with a grim realization, "we have to teleport away now!"

"We can't! If we go back with our hands empty the boss will..."

"I don't give a shit what he thinks!" Jupiter interrupted him, voice only a screech now. "I didn't bust my ass off getting two degrees on theoretical physics to die in a dump like this! Alakazam, teleport us to the base!"

Inyssa's body reacted at the sight of Jupiter dragging Charon towards the psychic Pokemon, ready to escape. Her legs moved once again on their own, but this time she was stopped before her stupidity could take off. Sarah's hand gripped hers and stopped her on her tracks.

"We have to clear this place!" She yelled, not only to her but to everyone else. "If that thing is really about to blow up..."

"NO!" The scream made everyone jump, and made Inyssa momentarily forget about her rage. Metchi took a step forward, a strange strength imbuing her as her eyes were set on the Galactic commanders. "I'm not letting you go again!"

"Wait you can't...!" Barry tried to grab her once again but the girl slapped his hand away, a terrifying expression on her face.

"Don't touch me!" she yelled. "I'm not gonna wait here for those two to escape, not after what I went through to find them!"

She ran forward, her feet moving swiftly considering the wound on her stomach. Inyssa wasn't sure if it was her imagination but she could swear there was some sort of golden glow surrounding her, and when she looked up at her eyes her heart froze. That yellow, that exact same color she'd seen back then, and recently behind Barry's eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she had the chance Metchi jumped on the bridge.

She wanted to scream at her, call her an idiot for heading to an electrified path even though she'd tried the same only seconds ago. But to her amazement Metchi simply ran through the bridge, the electricity bouncing off her as if she were wearing a rubber suit. She reached Jupiter and Charon the moment they grabbed onto the Alakazam; they both put their hands on the Pokemon's shoulders, and a purple glow surrounded them as they started to dissipate. But the pink haired girl was determined, and her hand managed to grab on to his mustache just in time. All four of them vanished into thin air.

She wanted to do something, but once again she felt Sarah's grip on her, the woman's face filled with worry. She looked up and witnessed as the core's light grew more and more powerful, until it was painful to look at it. Inyssa could feel disaster in it.

"Everyone, run towards the exit!" Sarah commanded, her voice filled with desperation and her eyes set on her and Barry. "Quick, before...!"

The entire world shook. Darkness swallowed everything.

Inyssa's breath escaped her lungs, her body paralyzed and her limbs unable to move. It felt like a light vacuum, as if the opposite of thunder had struck the room. Time had stopped, she could not feel the beating of her heart or the sound of everyone in her ears. Only shadows covering her eyes, and death's hand closing around her neck.

And then she heard it. The voice, shapeless, toneless, not a sound but simply words being implanted in her mind. She felt them clearly as crystal, her brain deciphering the soundless meaning behind it.

_Only this time. Try to stay out of trouble, will you, Niss?_

Her mind turned off, and her body fell into nothingness.

 

* * *

 

 

When her consciousness came back it felt like she woke up from the dead. Her muscles jolted into being awake, her eyes opening quickly and her lungs filling with air. Her body was cold, or at least half of it. More specifically the half that she now realized was laying on the cement floor under her. She moved her fingers first, making sure she was indeed alive, and a pint of joy sparked inside her as she felt the twitch of her muscles in her hand. Her back hurt a bit and the arm she was resting on was asleep, but other than that she felt fine. Definitely not burnt like she expected from that imminent explosion.

Her eyes moved in the small cone in front of her. Her vision was blurry, but it was slowly focusing. A shape was in front of her, tall and imposing. Behind her she could hear the crackling of fire and smoke. Almost a minute passed before she could see clearly again.

The shape had moved back, now barely at the edge of her vision. And yet she could make up her details clearly, not believing what she was currently seeing. The woman at the other side of the street was at least six feet tall, slim and graceful, wearing a black winter attire, a belt full of Pokeballs resting on her hips. Her gaze moved up slowly and she set her eyes on the woman's face, entranced by it. She was beautiful; even in her strange mental state that was the only word she could think to describe her. Her hair was long, reaching towards her knees and making it look like a coat of sunshine all over her. The golden of it covered part of her body and the entirety of her right eye, her left one staring directly at her, pale lips curved into a simple smile. Inyssa wanted to speak to her, reach her and meet her, but before she could say anything she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey kid! You awake?"

Gardenia's voice shock her back into reality. She blinked slowly, and when she opened her eyes again the strange woman had disappeared. She felt her body being dragged upwards by the Gym Leader's arms, until she was now sitting on the floor, her head spinning.

"Ugh... what... happened?" she grabbed her head with one of her hands.

"No freaking clue. I came back from leading my students to safety and I find... well, this." Gardenia pointed with her head to her right.

Inyssa followed her with her eyes, and what she saw at the other side of the street would have shocked her if she weren't so confused already. The building they were previously in had completely collapsed, now only a mountain of rubble and dust where before had stood such a proud place. She heard stomps coming toward her, Sarah and Barry walking their way, the boy having a huge smile on his face.

"Niss, you're okay!" he got on his knees and put his hand around her, almost throwing her to the floor again.

"H...hey Barry," she returned his hug, in no condition to be embarrassed at the moment, "and... Sarah. What happened?"

"I'm... not sure," the woman's voice was pale and brittle. "We were there and then... we were not. We all woke up outside the building after that machine leveled the place."

She could tell there was something more to it, Sarah's breathing was heavy and she noted that her hands were slightly shaking.

"What else happened?" She asked, no time to be courteous.

Sarah took her time to respond, and Inyssa could see both Barry and Gardenia bite their lips.

"We were the only ones who were teleported out."

She didn't understand what was wrong with that, that was a good thing, right? Sure, it was confusing but it was better than...

She opened her eyes wide, realization coming to her.

"What about those Galactic grunts? The ones who were there when we entered."

"They... were there when it happened," Sarah looked down. "They're trying to uncover their bodies from the rubble now, but they only found two, and they were both..."

Inyssa didn't need to hear the rest of it. Dead. That was the word Sarah tried to avoid, even though there was really no way around it. Death wasn't polite after all, it took and took and took without feeling an ounce of remorse.

"Listen... Barry, Inyssa," Sarah whispered. "I talked with my superiors a few minutes ago. There's going to be a full force investigation around this town, they said they're even sending one of the Elite Four to help..."

Inyssa couldn't help but gasp at the sound of that. A member of the Elite Four? Even after all the strange stuff that had happened, it still surprised her. One of the four strongest trainers in the region, bar the Champion of course, and all because of those clowns from Team Galactic.

"If you don't want to be stuck here, I'd recommend you get all your belongings and move towards the next route as soon as possible. I'd love to have you around here, but as soon as the investigation starts the town will be locked down for at least two weeks."

"We can't wait that long," Barry nodded, putting his hand on Inyssa's shoulders. "Um... Niss, you okay? Should we..."

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her mind was a mess, millions of thoughts flying around her head and making her dizzy. But there was no time for that right now.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she helped herself to her feet with difficulty. "Where should we go next?"

"Hearthome is the next city with a Gym Leader in it," Sarah explained. "And a very good friend of mine lives there, I'll make sure to tell her that you'll be coming. She'll be able to keep you both safe as long as you're there."

Inyssa nodded, trying to push the her confusion and exhaustion to the back of her mind, "Sounds good."

"I'll make sure you get all the equipment you need before you head out," Sarah showed them a tired smile. "You'll have to cross part of Mount Coronet, after all."

Mount Coronet. The word formed an image in her mind, one that gave her vertigo just thinking about it. The tallest mountain in Sinnoh, dividing the entire region in half. She knew they wouldn't have to cross the thick of it, but it was still going to be a challenge.

She guessed she would have a couple of intense days in front of her. Perfect for distracting her and not think about anything.

"Awesome," she spoke, voice emotionless. "Let's get going then."


	16. The Middle Sibling

Metchi was broken, her world fractured into a million pieces in front of her. Her eyes were wide open and yet she could see nothing except the shattered sky above, black spots filling her vision and slowly covering her body in what she imagined was a blanket of dark.

Wind carried her, she felt herself flying atop something, perhaps her own Pokemon? Whatever it was it brushed against her arms and legs, tickling her almost to the point of laughter. She felt like laughing anyway, and why wouldn't she? She adored flying more than anything else. In the back in her mind a flash of images came to her, from the first time she got to ride Lyserg, back when she still lived in Hoenn. Soaring high above the sapphire blue of the ocean, flocks of Wingulls keeping her company as she visited every part of the region, from Petalburg to Sootopolis. Warmth filled her chest as the images of her journeys passed in front of her like a strange movie. Back when she still had a home. Back when her flying hadn't been restricted by those invisible chains around her.

Back then, when the word Galactic hadn't meant anything to her.

The warmth inside her started burning, turning her insides into scorched black as she remembered. Why did she have to? Dreaming was fine, dreaming didn't hurt and it let her forget everything, even if only for a short time. She parted her lips, swollen and dry and bloody, and tried to draw a breath. She wasn't able to. She willed her limbs to move, barely being able to drag them from the floor below her towards her chest, and frantically tapped at her ribcage as if she could rip it open and force air into it. When her vision started getting blurry and her temples burned she felt that familiar heat behind her eyes, and the knot in her chest dissolved slowly, allowing her to breathe again.

Slow, methodical gasps came as her chest rose up and down. Her mind started catching up after that, and after a few seconds of staring blankly at the sky above she realized what she mistook for cracks in her vision were simply the leaves of the tree she was laying under. And the tickling in her legs and arms appeared to be the grass below her which she would've found embarrassing if she weren't in such a daze.

_Where are we?_

With difficulty she bobbed her head to the side, cheek landing on the soft grass and eyes barely focusing on the landscape around her. The floor curved downwards the more it got away from her and in the horizon she could see the blurry shape of Eterna city, far below where she was. How'd she gotten there? She closed her eyes and saw that flash of purple again, the one she'd followed right before...

She let out a defeated sigh. Team Galactic, of course that was the  _why_  she was looking for. The mist in her head started clearing as she remembered; she'd foolishly gone looking for them in the depths of that blasted city, and she'd almost made it to two of their commanders before that Scyther fell from the ceiling, eyes glistening with killing intent.

Failure. The word stuck to her, flew around her head like an annoying fly she couldn't quite slap away. She had failed, and quite spectacularly at that. Their mission was simple: open a way through the labs, defeat the few grunts that were scattered around the building and find Jupiter and Charon, easily the weakest of Team Galactic's commanders. It had seemed so easy, and then she'd gotten herself slashed and kicked in the chest mid-teleport leaving her on the side of a mountain. A golden opportunity served on a silver platter which had been executed with bronze stupidity.

_So little old Metchi screwed up again? Next you're gonna tell me the sky is blue._

_The wound_ , she reminded herself.  _Identify location, check your supplies, analyze wounds and keep going; you'll have time to sulk later._ She'd tried not to think about it back in the lab but now she really didn't have much else to do. Slowly, almost not wanting to she moved one of her hands towards her abdomen, weakly touching the spot in her lower stomach where that Pokemon had slashed her. The fabric of her shirt was wet, blood staining the area around it and making it feel sticky to the touch. She pressed slightly and a sense of relief filled her when she only felt a sting of pain; no more blood was coming out of it. She could work with that, she could work with not being about to die. Next she tried to move her legs and her hip, and while they were responding a bit slowly she still had her mobility. She felt a lump behind her back which meant she still possessed her backpack, and a touch with her hand in her belt told her Lyserg's pokeball was still there.

_Look at you, being all responsible. Maybe next time you'll even manage not to get yourself almost killed._

With a pained grumble she forced her body to the side, pushing herself upwards with her right hand, her left one making sure her backpack didn't fall to the floor. It was slow and sloppy and painful as all fuck, but eventually she managed to get up, and almost immediately wanted to throw herself at the floor again. She blinked fast, her vision blurry and her head spinning from the effort. Her stomach felt empty, painfully so, and her skin was way too hot considering the cold wind that surrounded her. The veins on her temples kept pulsing, sending shivers down her spine every time.

"I'm fine," she told herself, voice desperately trying to claw itself up from her throat. "I'm... fine. Now I have to..."

_"Heads up Metchi, you're about to vomit a lot of blood."_

Violent spasms shook her limbs, sliding her feet off the ground and forcing her to land on her elbows as her insides squirmed. The first heave made the skin in her neck tingle, the second one made her fingers run through the dirt beneath them as they curled into fists, and by the third one her entire body clenched and she couldn't hold it anymore.

It was for the better anyway. One thing she knew about throwing up was that the faster it was over the better. Of course it wasn't often that she let out a small torrent of dark red from her mouth, not even in her worse hangovers. The floor in front of her eyes was now splattered with a mix of blood and a few other fluids that she'd rather not think about. The disgusting flavor stuck to her teeth and gums.

_"I'm sorry, but I had to get all that out of your system somehow."_

Sluggishly she raised her head towards that voice, her breathing heavy and irregular. As familiar as always, it resonated inside her mind as an amalgamate of different buzzes and noises that somehow managed to form words together. There was nothing in front of her, but she knew better.

"Come out already," she ordered, exhaustion clinging to her bones, "I don't like talking to the air."

That familiar heat inside her chest evaporated slowly as a stream of golden mist exited her body, spiraling in the air in front of her and taking the form of a small, floating creature. Its body was oval and nearly as big as her head, grey and with skinny arms and tiny legs. Two ribbon shaped tails moved behind it in unison, a circled hole at the end of them where a red jewel should've been. Its head had two strange protrusions coming out of its sides, a pale blue covering most of its face. Metchi scoffed, not yet deciding if the sight of the Pokemon was a relief or a bother, especially with the glowing golden on its eyes set on her, unblinking.

For a legendary Pokemon Azelf sure looked like a fucking wimp, she thought.

_"How are you feeling, Metchi?"_

Words came out of the Pokemon, even though its tiny line of a mouth wasn't moving.

She couldn't help to laugh at that question. A throaty, almost pained sound that some might have mistaken for a weep. She locked eyes with the thing, as usual hating that Azelf didn't have a body for her to punch. Unless she started hitting herself, which considering her current condition didn't sound like a great idea.

"I'm..." she looked in her mind for a term to describe how she was feeling, and finally decided to summarize it the best way she could. "Azelf... this fucking blows."

_"Poignant choice of words, as usual."_

The lid of her eye twitched a bit. She hated talking to Azelf because it always felt like she was having a conversation with a floating, immobile doll. One who never stopped staring at her with those huge yellow eyes. She had to look down, choking a curse, and her sight set on the small pool of fluids at her feet.

"I'm sick of seeing my own blood," she whispered, her shoulders heavy.

 _"That sounds like a problem that's very easily solved._   _For anyone who's not you, that is."_

"Okay, shut your... nonexistent mouth," she raised a finger towards it. "I didn't call you to have a damn chat with some tea and lava cookies. We need to strategize."

 _"No,"_  that simple word hit her like a hurricane, almost knocking her down.  _"What you need to do is rest. I'm barely keeping you afloat with the power I have left, and after today's disaster we'll have to stay low for a while if we want to avoid capture."_

"I'm fine!" she yelled back. "I'm feeling better already, and that wound wasn't as bad as we thought."

 _"And who do you have to thank for that?"_  Azelf's translucid body floated closer to her, piercing her with its eyes. " _Do you know how hard it was to deviate that Scyther's attack to a spot where it wouldn't pierce your lower intestines or your iliac artery? Not very much, considering I had less than a second to do it."_

"Yeah I get it, you're sooo fucking great." she scoffed at him. "I don't have time to stroke your ego now. I need a status report, how's my body doing?"

Azelf stood still for a moment, although she immediately realized that it was always immobile and maybe the loss of blood was getting to her head. Finally it spoke again, voice as toneless as usual.

_"You've lost around one liter of blood. Your muscles are suffering from high exhaustion and your lack of sleep, food and drink have reduced your cognitive, physical and mental capabilities by thirty six percent._ _As for the wound in your stomach; I've managed to force your body to accelerate your immune system to almost three times its normal effectiveness. Scabs are already forming around the cut and should have the wound completely sealed in a few hours. After that it will begin to swole and you will find it difficult to move due to the pain and the white cells trying to repair broken tissues."_

"Summarize," she spat back at the Pokemon, slightly tapping her foot on the ground. "How much until I'm back to full strength?"

 _"That depends,"_  Azelf stopped for a moment, but immediately began talking after Metchi shot it a murderous look. " _By tomorrow night you'll be able to walk and act without too much pain, although you'll need to be careful not to reopen the wound. Complete healing will take at least a week and a half, even with me using my powers at all times."_

"I can work with that," Metchi nodded, feeling her eyes heavy. "Thanks, that's all I needed."

She took her eyes away from the creature, and with slow steps started walking towards the edge of the small patch of grass she was in. To her right the floor curved down in all directions but north, leading down the mountain path towards either Eterna City (the town seeming so small and insignificant from that height) or Route 208, covered in ancient rock and small lakes. She turned around once more, shifting her sight north. The path extended upwards to a point where it would've been impossible to pass through for anyone who wasn't a hiker. The mountain kept getting taller and taller until its body penetrated the clouds above. She'd been lucky to appear in the low part of what was the spine of Mount Coronet, otherwise she'd have no way down. Not after she idiotically used Lyserg to fight that Scyther and got her hurt, cutting down her only available means of transportation.

An itch in her chest surprised her and drained almost all her strength, as the blue of her eyes stood set against the imposing figure in front of her. She'd heard so much about this place back in Hoenn... the tallest string of mountains in the world, dividing an entire region in half and rising up even beyond the skies where they believed the legendary Pokemon of space and time resided. She'd wanted to visit it with all her heart, back when her dream was nothing more than to fly to the top of it. Back when she had dreams, anyway.

She had to contain a miniscule weep and forced those emotions back into the depths of her mind.  _Move on_. She told herself.  _Cry later, when you have a place to sleep._

"So..." she spoke to the air, still feeling eyes on the back of her head, "can't help but notice you haven't disappeared yet."

_"I was hoping we could talk."_

"What's there to talk about?" she shrugged. "I screwed up. If you wanna rub that in my face you could wait until later."

_"I don't take pleasure in proving you wrong. All the contrary, I've had to suffer the consequences of your actions as well._ _Your pain is my pain, remember? And after you abused my power to such lengths just to get to Jupiter and Charon..."_

"I didn't have a choice." she reiterated, talking through her teeth. "It was the perfect opportunity! Our plan just... lacked some polish is all."

 _"You mean the plan of not listening to my warnings and using half my power reserve to blow up an entrance to the building?"_  Azelf questioned. " _And alerting half the town in the meantime? We could've searched for another way in."_

"There was no time to think," she excused herself, unknowingly walking a few steps backwards. "We didn't know how long they would stay in there!"

 _"And then you hopelessly tried to follow them when they were granted to escape,"_ the legendary Pokemon kept talking, not listening to her excuses. " _Jupiter ended up saving your life, you know? What would've happened if she hadn't kicked you in the middle of the teleportation process? What would've happened if we ended up in the middle of Galactic HQ half dead and with no strength to fight?"_

Metchi wanted to respond, wanted to yell at Azelf until its voice went hoarse. Something blocked her throat, however. She figured it had to be something like shame.

_"Between those kids appearing to help you and Jupiter's stupidity we got incredibly lucky._ _That will not happen again."_

Metchi couldn't help but let out a chuckle. A very short, sad one, but it'd have to do.

"Those two... they do nothing but mess things up," she crossed her arms, brow furrowed. "If they hadn't interfered..."

 _"In that case you would most likely be dead right now, and team Galactic would've gotten all the energy they needed for the next step of their plan_.  _They accomplished more than we could've hoped to."_

She bit her lip, no retort coming to her. Azelf was right of course, the Pokemon usually was, but she hated to admit it. Inyssa and Barry... those names clung to the back of her mind, filling her with a single question that she wasn't sure she wanted answered.

"Do you think they escaped the explosion?" she didn't know why, but she asked that. Not specifically to Azelf, but to herself too. "Do you think... they're dead?"

_"Would it make any difference?_ _After all you've done, the people you've hurt, is another death on your shoulders really going to bother you?"_

"I... I guess not," she looked down, her fingers closing into a fist. "I do hope they're okay though..."

_"Don't worry yourself with those thoughts. The lives of those two are insignificant compared to the weight of our task._ _With one of my siblings in captivity and the other nowhere to be found we're the only ones who can stop team Galactic. Remember, if you die..."_

"I know, I fucking know." She interrupted it, heat rising to her face. "If I die you go back to them and we're all doomed. Got it, no pressure at all."

 _"Whining is unbecoming of you._   _I didn't give you humans the gift of Valor so you would be bogged down by your emotions. Even when not around Mesprit still manages to bother me, if only by proxy this time."_

"Sounds like you have some family issues you need to resolve," for the first time she formed a tiny smile, so weak that a gust of wind would've blown it away.

 _"Enough about that. For now, try to find respite and make your way to Hearthome so you can get supplies,"_  she could almost feel Azelf's irritation inside her chest, she figured her words had struck a nerve. " _I'll go back into your body, I'll need all my focus to make sure you heal faster, so I might stay silent for some time."_

"Finally, some good news."

 _"I heard that,"_  Azelf's body started to dissolve once more, the golden glow entering her chest and filling her with warmth once more. " _Now get going. And stay safe, not only your life depends on that."_

Silence. At last it filled the air around her taking the form of the silver winds that ruffled her hair and made her pink locks block part of her vision. Talking to Azelf had always been exhausting but this time certainly took the cake.

The middle child of the legendary Lake Trio, the being of Valor and one of the oldest creatures in existence. And also a colossal pain in the ass, as far as she was concerned.

With nothing more than a tired sigh she started walking towards her right, following the tight path between the trees that lead down to Route 208. She'd have to cross it to reach Hearthome where stealing and pillaging would be necessary to get the resources she needed so she could survive a few more days. It would be a complicated day, she told herself, so it'd be better to get over it fast. With care she started descending through the dirt path, small stones rolling downwards as she made her way. Her legs were still protesting and she still felt a bit dizzy, but she could slowly feel the strength coming back to her. Between that and the clear air she was breathing she felt a momentary sense of peace as she descended. Sure, she was in a tricky situation at the moment, but it could've been a lot worse.

She allowed herself a smile.  _I can get through this_ , she thought.  _As long as I'm careful and don't let my emotions..._

But her thoughts were interrupted as the dirt beneath her feet gave up and tripped her forwards, her body now falling down the side of the mountain's cliff.

 

* * *

 

 

Metchi was lucky her body bounced off the cliffside a few times before falling to the ground, absorbing with every hit the momentum that could've shattered her bones. She was also lucky she fell on her feet and landed on her right side, although at that point she thought luck was relative when she was in as much pain as she was. The impact shook her vision, clouding her senses and casting yet another cloak of dark on top of her. She could almost feel her consciousness escaping her as her body laid limp.

She couldn't say if minutes or hours passed while she was in that hazy stupor, but finally the mist inside her mind started dissipating, and she heard echoes around her. Voices, distant and yet feeling too close. When the darkness lifted from her eyes she saw a pair of green in front of them. A young girl's face was staring at her with a mix of confusion and shock. Next to her that familiar blonde boy was speaking words that sounded fumbled to her, although she could pick on his worried tone.

"...you're alive," she didn't quite like how honest she sounded, even though she was completely dazed.

"She spoke!" the blonde boy yelled, putting both his hands on the girls' shoulders.

"I can see that," she gave him a side glance, frowning. "Hey Metchi, nice to see you again."

"Niss! Help me get her up!"

She felt a pair of skinny hands grab her by the shoulders, attempting to get her to sit. She scoffed but didn't protest at the touch, trying to help him by putting her hand in the floor to lift herself. The girl named Inyssa was still in front of her, hesitation clear in her face. Staring. Judging. Metchi didn't like her expression one bit.

"Are you okay?" she heard Barry's voice at her side, through the clouds of pain and stupor. "What happened? We saw you disappear back in the lab!"

"I'm... fine," she whispered, too tired to slap away the boys' hand. "Bit dizzy is all. What are you doing here?"

"Uh... the route is like right there," Niss pointed behind her, towards the path of Route 208. "We found you passed out at the foot of the cliff."

"Oh my gosh, have you not treated that wound yet!?" Barry's eyes were set on her stomach, worry lines on his face. "We have to clean that! Niss, you have that first aid kit, right?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, it's here in my backpack somewhere," Inyssa seemed distracted, her eyes not wanting to dart away from her. She knew that gaze too well, "here," a small package of white made her way from the girl's hands to Barry.

"I said I'm fine," Metchi reiterated, strongly enough to make Barry consider backing out. "The cut is closed, I'm not bleeding anymore."

"Yeah, baloney," Barry put a hand on her shoulder, pushing her back and preventing her from standing up. Had he really said the word baloney? "It could still get infected if we don't clean it."

A rasp, harsh laugh came out of her mouth. She had to admit, she'd missed the boy's impossible naiveness and the sight of his honest, brown eyes. It was kind of like watching her past self in a mirror.

"If I let you treat my wound would you leave me alone?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Look at yourself, you're paler than Niss!" Barry kept talking, not paying attention to her words. Behind him Inyssa frowned at his comment. "When's the last time you ate something?"

"That depends on what you consider food," she smiled. Barry, however, didn't seem to share her sense of humor. "Uh... a day and a half ago, I guess."

"Jeez... that's awful!" she could see genuine concern on his face, to the extent that it made her a bit uncomfortable. "Don't worry, we'll give you something to eat and drink as soon as I get this wound fixed up. Right Niss?"

The question caught the young girl off guard. For once she took her eyes away from Metchi and looked at her friend, her lips stretched thin. She could see hesitation on her face, even if it only lasted for a second. She knew what it meant, she knew what was going through the girl's head right now.

 _I don't trust you_ , her eyes said. Maybe she was thinking too much about it, but she couldn't help but feel rancorous at the way she was staring at her.

"Yeah... of course," Inyssa finally said, nodding weakly. "I hope you like pancakes, Metchi."

Metchi switched her sight between the two, exhaustion covering her entire body. She felt a sting of something she couldn't determine inside her chest, and decided to look down.

"Why are you helping me?" she asked, voice almost too low to hear. "You saw what happens around me. You almost died twice because you tried to get close to Team Galactic. Why do you do this? What do you want from me?"

Both kids stopped in their tracks, and had to look at each other for an answer. Barry's eyes were sulken and a drop of sweat was running down his temple, while Inyssa's expression was unreadable. A few seconds passed before one of them answered.

"Because you're in trouble and we  _want_  to help you," Barry squished her shoulder with his hand, smiling brightly. "That's all there is to it, we don't want anything in return."

"Well..." Inyssa bit her lip, trying to suppress a smile.

"Niss!"

"Fine, fine. Yeah we're just a couple of humanitarians, that's us," she crossed her arms, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Just let us help you so we can extract some information from you later."

"I told you, I can't say anything," Metchi spoke with a pained voice. "It would attract them to you, and I don't want your deaths in my conscience."

 _As if you care_ , the voice inside her head resonated,  _You would sacrifice them both to accomplish your objective._

 _Shut the fuck up_ , she replied.

"Right..." Inyssa rolled her eyes, and with difficulty got on her knees, eyes now at the same height as hers. "Look, these past weeks have been pretty crazy for us too. Between the shit that happened in the bridge, team Galactic and that haunted house it's not exactly been a vacation for us."

"Oh boo hoo," she couldn't help but scoff at her words. "Yeah I'm sure not being able to take on the Gym leaders was extremely stressful for you."

"That's not..." red rose to Inyssa's cheeks, "that's not what I meant. After what Mars did to me, and after what we saw back in that lab, we can't go on with our journey just ignoring what Team Galactic is doing. And we know that you know something about them, we know that you're trying to stop them, whatever their objective is."

"Yeah! And any enemy of team Galactic is a friend of us," Barry smiled, pointing at himself. "We want to help you catch them, even if it's just with small stuff."

"Someone has to do something," Inyssa claimed, eyes full of determination. "And the Association is not making many strides so we figured we could use your help to get them to justice."

"Aren't you... scared?" Metchi asked them, disbelief clear on her eyes. "You know what they could do to you if you got in their way, right?"

"Of course we're scared," the girl replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "But my desire to punch Mars in the face trumps that fear, so we're all good for now."

"What do you say?" Barry walked near his friend, and both of them stared directly at Metchi. She could see something between them, a flame so faint and pale that it could disappear any second. "We can help you."

Metchi frowned, not believing those idiots' words. They had no idea what true fear was like, they didn't know what team Galatic was capable of. A wrong turn and both of them would end up dead. Just another couple of bodies, another two corpses forced into the back of her mind where her conscience couldn't reach them. She opened her mouth to refuse, to tell them they were a couple of morons and they should just leave her alone before they got hurt. But the words that came out of her mouth were something she didn't expect, something fueled by that stupid warm feeling that had started growing through her body after listening to their encouraging words.

"Fine," that single word was extremely hard for her to say, and she couldn't help but look down, avoiding their gazes. "I'll eat your food, I'll let you heal me and you'll take me to Hearthome. Then I'll go away and we'll hope to never see each other again."

Both of them smiled. Stupid, young smiles that did nothing but fill her with pointless hope.

"Whatever you say," Inyssa gave her a pat in the shoulder. "Let's get you fixed up, and then we can have a talk."


	17. Hard Questions and Unsatisfying Answers

Perhaps it was the way they had him walk between them as they made their way through Route 208. Maybe it was just the glances they tried to sneak past each other, full of bitterness and anger and distrust. Or maybe it was the constant, tiring, excruciating bickering which made Barry wish he could chop his own ears off.

In any case, he was pretty sure Niss and Metchi didn't like each other. They had only found her fifteen minutes ago and already the atmosphere around them had become tense and awkward, so much that not even his natural charms could change that. He looked up at the clear sky, one of Mt Coronet's cliffs standing proud at his left, and he saw Steven and Paulette flying high above him, watching the road ahead and playfully soaring in circles around each other. How he wished he could be one of them right now.

"For the last bleeding time, I don't know anything about this ghost!"

Metchi's voice reached him, harsh and strong and just a tad irritating. She looked barely less in the process of dying than fifteen minutes ago. The yellow  _No God_  pasted on her shirt was still torn from the incident in Eterna City, so that now it read  _No Coo_.

"I was only there for a week and I never saw any of what you're describing," she repeated, her face red from the effort of both walking and talking at the same time. "I never saw a weird girl or an electric ghost, and I sure as shit never got referred to as  _Big Sis_  or whatever you imagined you heard back there."

Niss huffed, hands tightly gripping the straps of her backpack, "We nursed you back to health, the least you can do is be honest with us."

"If by nurse me back to health you mean give me a couple cold pancakes, a can of soda and some old bandages," Metchi shook her head. "Forgive me for not singing you praises or throwing petals in front of your feet."

Niss was about to say something back, but he decided he should interrupt before things got out of hand.

"Niss, I think she's telling the truth." He put a hand between them, doing his best not to be intimidated by their glares. "Maybe someone else was in that house before her. It was pretty old."

Niss wrinkled her nose and grit her teeth, probably trying to find a way to discuss the matter further. But after a few seconds she simply turned away, a sour expression adorning her face.

"This must be what paying taxes feels like," she whispered under her breath. "You give all your stuff to people who almost blew themselves up and they don't even let you extract information from them."

Barry tried not to laugh, while Metchi turned her head towards her and knit her eyebrows. She still walked with difficulty, one hand pressed against her stomach, but she was doing much better since she'd eaten some of their food.

"First, that's classist. Which doesn't surprise me coming from you," she replied, bitter tone. "Second, you wouldn't know what paying for something is even if financial problems punched you in the face. And third…" she coughed a couple drops of blood before continuing, "those were some really good pancakes, Barry. Thanks."

He was about to reply when Niss put a hand on his shoulder, pressing it with an iron grip.

"I pay for my things, I'm not a criminal!" she protested, right hand closed into a fist. "Unlike you, I'm sure."

"You get all your money from your family," Metchi spat back, "you've never had to work a day in your life, I'm sure."

"Okay! Okay…" Barry put his arm between them, voice shaking. He had to stop them from killing each other somehow. "I know we're all with like… short fuses after what's been happening, but let's try to keep it chill. There's no reason for us to fight; we're all on the same side."

Metchi looked at him for a few moments, lowering her head and nodding slowly. Niss on the other hand looked like she was trying hard to find a way to disagree with his statement. He could almost see the steam coming out of her ears. For a moment he imagined her as Enma and couldn't contain a chuckle he had to disguise as a cough.

The overexcited Monferno was further ahead, helping to clear the road from any wild Pokemon that they could come across. Niss seemed to hope that he would take it easy for once, but there didn't appear to be a chance of that happening. As soon as he got out of his Pokeball he'd run ahead to fight anything he could find, to the dismay (and pride, he was sure) of his trainer.

"You say we're on the same side…" Niss spoke up once more, "but we don't even know what the sides are. And she's not giving us ample reason to trust her with all this secrecy."

He bit his lip, not knowing how to answer. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't dying to know everything Metchi could tell them about Team Galactic, but he also thought it was extremely rude to harass her for the information while she was weak and injured. Sometimes he wished Niss could have just a little more tact and didn't just insult the woman when she didn't give her what she wanted.

"I can hear you, you know," Metchi replied, a bored look on her face. "I already told you everything you need to know about Team Galactic; they're bad news and you should stay away from them. Leave the fight to those who know what they're doing."

Barry interfered before his friend had a chance to show her impressive knowledge of profanities.

"Now, to be fair…" he tried to make his voice as calm and neutral as possible, "we encountered those Galactic grunts before, and we beat them easily!"

Niss puffed her chest up, "You're falling a bit short; I completely and effortlessly cleaned the floor with them. I wouldn't even remember those losers if they weren't part of Team Galactic."

"Jeez, that hat big enough for you to contain your ego?" He heard Metchi whispering to herself.

Even though her tone was mocking he could see the surprise in her expression.

"You shouldn't feel too proud of yourself," she mentioned after a few seconds. "Their power lies in numbers, so it's not surprising one or two of them would lose against a… reasonably talented trainer," she spoke her last words slowly, apparently enjoying the way Niss looked at her with venom in her eyes. "They're just children, after all. Barely older than you."

Barry felt something cold crawling up his insides towards his throat. The shadow that set over Niss' eyes told him that she felt the same thing.

"Children?" His voice came out as barely a whisper. "What do you mean?"

"What, you haven't figured it out yet?" Metchi showed him a dry, pained smile. "How do you think they get all their recruits? You can't honestly expect responsible grownups to join a group that dresses like that."

"I'm…" He tried to talk, but it was like something was stuck inside his throat. "That's…"

"They convince young people without purpose in life to follow them. They give them food, money and a roof to sleep under. And more importantly, they give them a sense of purpose." There was a strange sadness to her voice. "The boss has a way with words, I tell you. And kids these day are impossibly naïve and idealistic, so it's pretty easy for him to direct them like sheep. The only really dangerous folk around there are the com…" She stopped herself suddenly, her eyes opening wide. "Fuck, I wasn't supposed to talk about this! Stop trying to trick me to tell you stuff!"

She turned towards the both of them, maybe expecting Niss to protest or yell at her or anything of the like. Instead she found them a few feet behind her, standing completely still and a clear look of dread pasted on their faces.

"W-what… are you guys okay?" She spoke tentatively, looking around her. "What's with those faces?"

"They're… they were all around our age?" He was scared of the way his voice came out, shaking and almost broken. His body felt cold all of a sudden. "Then back in Eterna…"

Metchi opened her mouth, surely to ask him what was his problem, when realization hit her. 

"What happened?" she spoke those words with urgency. "What happened after I teleported out?"

He tried to answer, but the words didn't come to him. He could feel his lower lip trembling.

"The building came down," Niss replied, sorrow reflected on her tone. "We're the only ones who got out."

In the back of his mind he knew she'd intentionally omit the part where something miraculously saved them from being crushed to death, but that was being drowned by the horrible realization that such miracle had done nothing for the numerous Galactic grunts who were unconscious inside the building at the time.

All color evaporated from Metchi's face, as she stared at them expecting a  _Just kidding!_ , but none came. She lowered her sight towards the ground, her breathing becoming heavier. For an instant, between two of her short blinks, he could almost swear her eyes became golden. A chill went up his spine at the sight of it, but he figured it was just a trick of the light.

"That's…" she spoke slowly, all strength gone from her voice while she searched for the right word to use. "Unfortunate."

"Is that all you have to say?"

Both of them turned towards Barry, surprised that those words came from him. He would lie if he said he wasn't surprised himself, but the burning knot in his stomach made it hard to reason at the moment.

"A dozen kids died and you think it's just unfortunate?" he could feel the heat imbuing his voice. "They didn't choose to…"

"What? They didn't choose to be there to die?" Metchi spat back at him, and for a second the anger inside him was replaced with fear at the fierceness of her voice. "I'm afraid that's exactly what they did, that's what all of us did. And that's exactly where you two dipshits are headed if you keep digging all this stuff." She blinked furiously, trying to hide the wetness in her eyes. "Just… don't look for them, please. I don't' want your deaths in my conscience, not on top of everyone else's."

A heavy, deep silence fell over them as they avoided each other's eyes. Barry hugged himself, trying to keep the cold away from his body, until he felt something around his arm. He didn't notice Niss getting close, nor her hands closing around him, giving him warmth. Her face was slightly obscured by her black locks, but he could see pain and guilt under them.

"I want to be the Champion," Niss' voice was barely above a whisper. "I want to stand above every other trainer, so that when I look up the only thing I see are the stars. That's the only way I could ever be happy."

"That's a childish dream," Metchi said. This time there was no bitterness in her voice, just a sad acceptance.

"But…" she ignored her words, and kept speaking. "Mars… she humiliated me, she killed my Pokemon and I couldn't do anything about it. I need to make her feel what she made me feel that day, I need to stop… having these nightmares." She looked up, and her eyes met with Metchi's. "I have to take her down. I owe it to Bertha and the rest of my Pokemon. I'll never feel confident in my strength again if I don't."

If he didn't think twice about it he would've thrown his arms around her and hugged her until she had to chase him away with a broom. But he simply looked down, ashamed. So she'd been having nightmares, huh? Of course she did; those heavy bags under her eyes betrayed her clearly as day, and yet he'd been none the wiser about it. He imagined it then; Niss waking up in a cold sweat, tears welling up in her eyes as she realized she's not reliving that horror anymore.

Barry wished the ground would just swallow him. He'd never felt more useless in his life.

"Listen kid…" Metchi brought a hand to her face, rubbing her eyelids weakly, "that's very… honorable and commendable and all that, but there's something you gotta learn eventually. Dreams die and they die hard, crashing and burning and exploding. And you're gonna crash and burn with them if you don't learn to let them go."

"I'd rather die," was her simple answer.

Metchi shrugged, "You're a lost cause, then. What about you, kid?"

A few seconds passed before he realized she was speaking to him. He opened his mouth, completely dry, and tried his best to give a satisfying answer. The truth was he didn't know. He didn't have Niss' unwavering spirit, he didn't have the desire to be the Champion to the point where he would sacrifice his life for it. He wasn't as strong or as dedicated as her.

He wasn't good enough to be the Champion, not with someone like Niss standing next to him.

"Isn't it obvious?" Niss finally said, arms crossed. "He's not going to give up on it either. We're both trying to be the best."

"We…" he was finally able to get some words out, the warmth of her words untying the icy knot inside his throat. "Yeah, obviously… we gotta compete with each other so we constantly get better."

Niss shot him a satisfied smile, not noticing the wavering tone of his voice. Metchi let out a long sigh and pressed a hand against the back of her neck, looking to him like the most tired person in the world.

"Fine, you wanna throw your lives away? Be my guest," she lowered her shoulders, defeated. "You can each ask me one question, and then I'll be gone. We're too close to Hearthome already and I can't risk to be seen by anyone."

His eyes opened wide, not believing what he was hearing. Just like that? They could ask literally anything they wanted? He turned towards Niss with a smile on his face, curiosity burning inside him, and opened his mouth to discuss what question they should choose. But the girl had beaten him to the punch and was already talking.

"Mars!" she yelled, a sense of urgency in her voice. "Tell me everything you know about her."

For the first time in his life he felt annoyed at the carelessness of another person. He figured this was karma doing its work against him.

"Of course that's your choice." Metchi muttered under her breath, shaking her head lightly. "Mars is… as far as I know, the youngest commander of Team Galactic. She's in charge of any operation that involves stealing information or artifacts, thanks to her… natural stealth, so to speak."

"Her Ditto can transform her into other people." Niss nodded, hands closed into fists. "That's how she tricked me…"

"That still… doesn't make much sense," he mentioned, trying not to sound like he didn't believe Niss. "I've never heard of a Ditto that could do something like that. All the ones I saw could transform themselves into other Pokemon and that's it."

"Your guess is as good as mine, pal," Metchi shrugged.

Niss narrowed her eyes, "This is really shitty information."

"Look kid, what do you want from me? Do you think Mars went around telling all the grunts how her ability worked? She might be nuts but she's not stupid," she explained, a vein of irritation appearing on her temple. "All I know is that whatever happened to her, Charon was responsible for it. He's been doing experiments on Pokemon and people for as long as he's worked for Team Galactic. Other than that, no idea."

Nis crossed her arms, a look of disappointment in her face. He guessed she was expecting a lot more than that for her answer.

"Fine, I'll just have to search for her myself," she sighed, and her sight turned towards him. "Now you go."

He thought it over for only a few seconds, for he knew deep down exactly what he wanted to ask.

"What's your deal?" he said, before he could process his words. "I mean… why did you join Team Galactic? And why did you leave?"

The question caught her by surprise, judging by the way her posture relaxed and by the shadow of a smile that formed over her lips. She was about to answer when he felt Niss' fist bury in his arm.

"You dumbass! That's what you choose to ask!?" she protested, spitting the words at him. "We could've learnt something useful!"

"I was curious!" he defended himself, pushing her with his free hand. "Besides, you did the same thing! If you get to be an idiot then I get to do the same!"

She stomped a foot on the ground, and tried to come up with a rebuttal which never came. He heard Metchi's chuckle behind him.

"Well, she's not wrong. That is a stupid question," she said, scratching her cheek with a look of levity. "There's not much I can tell you, unfortunately. I was young and stupid and I had lost too much in a short time. Team Galactic promised me I would be part of something big, of the next important change of humanity. So of course I jumped right in and gave my freedom away for a stupid uniform and a fake name," she bit her lip, eyebrows knit together. "They called me Ursa and they assigned me to Mars' squad. I made good friends back there and I'd be lying if I said I didn't felt like… like I finally belonged. But…"

She swallowed, as if her next words were extremely hard to say. He could see the exhaustion and sadness in her eyes.

"I caught wind of their real plans, which no…" he raised her eyes towards them, "I will not share with you, not that you'd believe me anyway. In any case, I escaped their base and took something very important to them, reason why they blew up an entire bridge just to catch me."

"What did you steal?" he asked, not being able to help himself.

"I said one question," she raised a finger at him, a sly smile on her face. "Sorry, but that's a secret."

"You really like giving non specific answers." Niss narrowed her eyes at her. "It's annoying."

"It sure is," she replied, a satisfied look on her face. "Well, that's all for now, I really should be going," she looked towards the path in front of them, where the bridge going over the river connected with the final stretch of the road, leading directly to Hearthome. "As I said, I can't stick to the main path anymore. I'll infiltrate the city at night, and I'll try recover my strength before I move again."

"Good riddance," Niss spat back as she turned around towards the road. "Try not to get yourself stabbed again. Let's go, Barry."

"Thanks for your all your help!" he hurried his words, concern growing inside his chest as he was being dragged by his friend forward. "If you need anything we'll be around the city! We'd be happy to help you out again!"

Metchi offered him a warm smile, which eased some of the worry forming a knot inside him. She raised her left hand, the one that wasn't holding her stomach, and waved at him.

"Take care of your friend, and try to stay out of trouble," she yelled, more enthusiastically than he would've expected. "And let's pray we don't have to meet again!"

"Preaching to the choir on that one," he heard Niss whisper. "Come on Barry, I'm hungry, tired and pissed off. Let's try to get to the Pokemon Center before the sun goes down."

They were able to do that, even though he barely noticed the passage of time as they walked, too deep in his own thoughts to pay attention to his surroundings. He was sure Niss was aware of this, along with the strange lack of energy and words coming from him, but she decided not to call attention to it. He was grateful for that.

 

* * *

 

 

The road didn't take long to get through, although they had to stop for a couple minutes one time when Niss accidentally looked inside one of the caves leading to the insides of Mt Coronet. If there was something he'd learn those past weeks was that claustrophobia was no joke.

By the time they finally made it to the entrance of the city the sun was halfway hidden in the horizon, and the light it shone on the buildings standing tall in front of them was almost enough to erase all negative thoughts inside him.

"Wow…" he heard himself whispering, a smile forming on his face.

"Holy crap," Niss agreed, eyes glued to the sight in front of her.

Hearthome wasn't nearly as big as Jubilife, but it sure felt like it was. The entire city seemed to glow under the weak light of the setting sun, each building and house an architectural work of art on its own right. It blended itself with a strange mix of ancient and modern, exuberant colors and lights decorating what seemed to be a town hundreds of years old. The peaks of Mount Coronet cast a heavy shadow over it, giving it a peaceful, resting look. And on the right the forest almost seemed to blend itself with the city, as if it had grown out of it.

Full of life was the only way he could describe the place, which appeared to be an apt way to put it.

"It's a shame it's getting so late," Niss said after a few seconds of admiring her surroundings. "I'd love to walk around and explore."

"There's always tomorrow," he smiled. "Come on, we have to at least see what the Pokemon Center is like."

She nodded, and together they stepped inside the city. He could feel the change of location in an almost physical way, as if he'd just crossed an invisible barrier, but he was too distracted to wonder about it. He could not wait to see the city in person, and whatever the first interesting thing he'd come across would be.

That turned out to be a person. A boy, in fact, that he'd seen before, laying face down on the city entrance's asphalt. He was still wearing his blue and grey shirt and that weird red beret over his now messy hair. The smile disappeared from his face as realization hit him.

"L…Lucas?" Barry asked, eyes opened wide and a look of horror on his face.

"What are you…" Niss turned her head towards the boy, and she almost jumped out of her skin. "Holy shit! Are you okay!?"

"U…ugh…" the boy made a few noises, which didn't exactly put him at ease. "I'm… I'm fine, just… route, too long. I kinda…" he slowly got on his knees, all his clothes stained with dirt and dust. "I kinda… underestimated Mt Coronet…"

He didn't need to finish his sentence for them to understand. Shock disappeared from Niss' face and was replaced with a look of incredulousness. She put a hand over her forehead and sighed deeply.

"Today just doesn't want to give me a break, does it," she whispered to herself. "Help me get him up, Barry. Let's get this idiot to a Pokemon Center before he passes out on us."


	18. The Violet Shadow

Inyssa took another sip of her strawberry and vanilla tea, and as she flicked her tongue inside her mouth trying in vain to taste the two flavors that were absent from it, she thought to herself that this was getting quite old. Not that she had a problem with helping others when they needed her, but having to carry and take care of two exhausted and famished people in the space of a couple hours was a bit absurd.

"…that's why I collapsed on the floor," Lucas finished telling his story, his hands trying to extract warmth from a cup of hot chocolate. "And then... well, you know the rest."

Barry's eyes were glued to him as he told his story, hands grabbing his knees, "The part with the horde of Psyducks was really cool."

She took another sip, mostly out of habit than anything else, and debated whether to scold or praise Lucas. She decided to go with half and half.

"Well, it was time you got out of Rowan's shadow," she leaned back on the cushy leather sofa, touching shoulders with Barry. "Though I can't say crossing route 208 and part of Mt Coronet without a proper team or supplies was a good idea."

Lucas looked down to his cup, a faint blush on his cheeks.

"You can't make me feel bad for my decision." He tried to put some strength into his voice, but ended up making it break. "You were right; I have to study Pokemon on my own if I want to make a name for myself."

She opened her mouth to reply but felt Barry's elbow lightly tap her ribs. He knit his eyebrows and shot her a look of  _Don't make fun of him_. She pouted back and took the cup to her lips once again.

"Hey man, that's great!" Barry reached to the other side of the small table and gave the boy a couple pats on the shoulder. "It's cool to see you break out of your shell, you know? So what if you kinda almost died a couple times? I'm sure the professor would be proud."

Lucas crossed his arms unconsciously, hugging himself, and showed them a smile that made something jump inside the cold, uncaring void that was her chest. She raised the cup to her mouth to hide the red in her cheeks and gave Barry a side glance. Judging by his expression, she figured the boy's charm had worked on him too.

 _He shouldn't be allowed to be that adorable,_  she protested to herself.  _There's just no justice._

"T-thank you! I'll try my best!" he nodded energetically, lowering his mug to the table and reaching for something inside his backpack. "I already got so much information on Psyduck! I can't wait to show the professor what I found out about their migration process."

He placed a small laptop on top of his knees, the same one she'd seen back in Sandgem. An idea appeared just at the edge of her mind, slightly out of reach.

"That's… that's okay, bud." Barry raised both hands, forming a half smile. "No offense but I don't think I'd understand half of it."

She clicked her tongue, foot slowly tapping the floor. What was she thinking about before? Something about that computer and Lucas…

"Oh… yes, sorry," he nodded nervously, closing the laptop with care. "I'm sure you already have all the information you could need on your Pokédex…"

A light turned on inside her mind, and her eyes opened wide. She could almost swear she felt one of her Pokeballs twitch a bit. Trying to appear casual she looked around, making sure no one was eavesdropping on them. While the Pokemon Center was packed with a fair number of trainers none of them were close enough to hear anything they were saying, especially with the noise they were making.

She leaned forward, eyebrows knit together, and left her cup at the table.

"Lucas…" she spoke, trying to sound casual. "How much information would you say you have in that thing compared to the Pokédex?"

He felt Barry's inquisitive eyes on her. She simply took her index finger to her lips, and pointed with her eyes to her belt.

"Huh? Oh, well…" Lucas grabbed his chin. "A tad more, I guess? I have access to research papers and notes from trainers across the region."

"From other trainers?" Barry asked. "What do you mean?"

Lucas was about to answer when Inyssa elbowed Barry's arm.

"He means other Pokédex Holders, you dingus." She shook her head. "If a trainer notices a new Pokemon behavior or trait that hasn't been documented they can add it to the database."

"Well, technically yes," Lucas intervened. "That data has to be verified first by a specialist, and if it's deemed to be correct then it'll be added to the new versions of the Pokédex." He raised his index finger and smiled proudly, as if he were giving a lecture. "And I have access to all those data points, whether they've been verified or not. The professor trusted me with this information."

"Yes we're all very proud of you," she cut him off with a gesture of her hand. "Listen, I need you to look something up on your computer, think you can do that for me?"

"Of course! It's the least I can do for your help. What do you want to know?"

"I need information on a certain Pokemon," she whispered. "Look up the words red, ghost and electric."

Something shook inside one of her Pokeballs, and she could swear she felt a jolt of electricity hitting her hip.

"No results on the official records," the boy said after a few seconds of searching. "Not even a mention of it…"

She sat back, arms crossed, and unconsciously scratched the inside of her arm. Barry's expression seemed to say:  _Yeah, kinda figured._

And after all the trouble she'd went to just to make Lucas warm up to her. Sure, that wasn't her initial plan, but it certainly would've been a nice compensation for her charitable actions. Her eyes moved once more to the Pokeball where Hao rested, and she bit the inside of her lip. Now the only lead they had lied with that old man from Team Galactic.

"Well..." she sighed. "Guess it can't be h…"

"Wait!" Lucas interrupted her, his big almond eyes widening. "There's one mention of it in the rejected data folder."

She felt a spark running through her body, completely unrelated to the previous one.

"It's an email. Here, let me read it for you." He cleared his throat in preparation, and started reading the text with a serious tone that would've made her chuckle if the situation were different. "Greetings, professor Rowan. I apologize for contacting you without any kind of previous notice, but as of now I can't rely on the Association to hold on to this information. I hope you remember me from the day you gave me my Charmander, my name is S…"

His voice came to a halt, so suddenly he almost choked on his own breathing. He slowly looked up to meet her eyes, a hint of fear behind them, and didn't say anything else. Inyssa blinked a couple times, confused. What the hell was wrong with him, why'd he stop out of nowhere? Why would reading a trainer's name cause that kind of react…?

Realization hit her like a hammer, and for a moment she felt like she couldn't breathe. Of course, of fucking course it had to be that. Next to her Barry's eyes opened wide; he'd probably arrived to the same conclusion.

Well, that explained why Lucas suddenly seemed scared of her. Last time she'd heard that name in his presence she ended up terrorizing him with the way she'd reacted. She closed her eyes for a few moments and breathed deeply, attempting to calm the storm that had formed inside her chest. She opened her mouth to speak, and her voice came a lot calmer than she'd expected.

"I'm okay," she told him, tone emotionless, "keep going."

He looked at Barry, who shot him a look of  _Go on, she'll probably not want to kill you this time._ Or maybe she was reading too much into his expression, who knows.

"My name is… Shadi Dawn," he pronounced the name carefully. "As for the contents of this report, I wanted to inform you that I might have discovered a new species of Pokemon. As you might know, deep in Eterna forest lies an old chateau which has been abandoned for decades. I was training in the vicinities of the forest when I noticed something strange in one of the windows of the mansion, so I went in. Inside I encountered a few oddities not worth mentioning here, but most importantly I ran across a very powerful creature. It was gaseous in form, and its appearance was that of a red bolt with blue eyes, its body brimming with electricity…"

Barry let out a small gasp of excitement, but Inyssa was too concentrated on the boy's words to pay any attention to it. And while she felt a strange warmth at hearing her sister's words again, a stray thought appeared in her mind:  _Wow, gaseous? Its body brimming? She really did always talk like a nerd._

"…unfortunately, I was not able to catch this Pokemon, as it ran away the moment I gained the upper hand," Lucas continued narrating. "I've been camping inside this abandoned house for almost a week now, and though I find myself enjoying its antiquated commodities, I'm afraid I haven't run into the ghost Pokemon since. I will have to leave this place in a few days when I finish taking care of business, and I hope we can meet again in Sandgem Town by then. I will show you some sketches I drew of this strange creature and we can discuss how to collect more information on it. I apologize again for bothering you, professor. Sincerely yours, Shadi."

He stopped reading, pausing to take a deep breath, and looked up at her expectantly. She simply stared at the small table at her feet, her mind storming with questions. Her body leaned forward, and she raised one hand to her face, massaging her eyelids and letting out a small sigh.

"When was this message sent?" she asked.

"Uh… hold on…" Lucas' eyes moved down to his computer. "Two years ago, almost exactly."

Inyssa bit one of her fingers, enough to make it hurt just a little. Two years ago. After she lost against the Champion, but before she disappeared. Somewhere in the middle of her months of training, and possibly a few weeks before she saw her for the last time, back in that cold morning in Twinleaf.

"Thanks," she told the boy, "that's all I needed."

Lucas's eyes moved from Inyssa to Barry, and then back to her. Worry formed a wrinkly, adorable line on his forehead.

"Well, If I can help you with anything else…"

"I'll be sure to let you know," she said. "Now, you should really get all that dust and dirt off your clothes and maybe take a bath and a nap. I'm sure you need it after what you've been through."

"Yeah, we even booked in a room for you!" Barry said enthusiastically. "Trust me, those beds are comfier than falling asleep on top of an Altaria's wings."

"T-thank you so much!" Lucas got up and bowed to the point his hat almost fell to the floor. "I'll be heading for Pastoria City as soon as I recover; I was assigned to study the Great Marsh and the Pokemon that live in it."

"Don't forget to buy food," she reminded him. "And try to train your Pokemon whenever you can, you'll need them for protection."

"We'll swing by Pastoria at some point to fight the Gym Leader," Barry added. "So we'll see you again for sure. Now go get some rest, man."

Lucas nodded, and for a few seconds stood there with a look that told her he was debating wether to hug them or not. In the end he decided to air on the side of caution and simply headed towards the top floor to his room.

Inyssa grabbed her cup from the table and drank what was left of the tea. Cold, tasteless, and not enough to dissolve the knot formed in her throat. She applied more force to her fingers, briefly considering either breaking the mug in her hands or throwing it across the room. One option could end up with her hand covered in cuts, the other would attract unwanted attention from the rest of the trainers in the lobby.

She clicked her tongue, trying to focus on anything else other than her thoughts. Was she breathing? Yes, but it felt like she needed more air than usual. She hadn't blinked in a few seconds and she felt a bothersome sting in her eyes. The tip of her fingers were red from grabbing onto the cup so strongly. Maybe if she just…

"Niss," Barry's voice brought her back to reality, and she turned to him. His lips were stretched, pale. "Are you okay? We can go somewhere else if you want to."

She shook her head, perhaps too quickly, and put one of her hands on his shoulder. It felt real, unlike everything else around her. She closed her eyes and tried to control her breathing, tried to tell her stupid heart to stop beating so hard because fuck no she was not going to have a panic attack with so many people around.

 _Collect your thoughts, put them in order,_  she told herself.  _Just like Sarah taught you._

"Why was she in Eterna Forest?" her voice came out slightly more high pitched than she wished. "What was she doing there?"

"Didn't she say she was training?" Replied Barry, still observing her with caution.

"Barry, we've been there," she said, frustration clinging to her voice. "And we got through it with just our second stage starters. Her Pokemon were as strong as those of an Elite Four, she would gain nothing from training in that place."

His fingers started tapping on the couch's arm as his expression turned to one of concentration. She'd only seen him that contemplative a handful of times.

"She also said she was investigating something. She spent an entire week there."

She nodded weakly. Maybe she ran into the little girl Barry saw? The one she decided to interpret as just being an illusion created by that ghost Pokemon because seriously, she was not ready to think about the other possibility it entailed.

"Do you think she was the Big Sis that little girl mentioned?" Barry asked, quicker on the uptake than she expected. "Since Metchi said that wasn't her."

"Metchi could've lied," she argued, "but… yeah, that's also a possibility."

"What are you gonna do?"

"Talk to Rowan as soon as I get the chance. If they really met after she sent him that email then he might know something about… this thing." She took the Pokeball out of her belt, examining it closely.

She also hoped he would have any kind of lead or clue about her sister's whereabouts. It was a small chance, almost inexistent, but she was not ready to let that small flame of hope die just yet. There had to be something hidden within all this; some kind of connection. The ghost Pokemon, her sister, Team Galactic, Mars… too many coincidences to just write them off.

She imagined what Shadi would've told her:  _People are good at finding patterns where there are none._

Great, and now the knot in her throat was back. She couldn't think properly in that state, she had to expel some energy somehow.

Her eyes went to the other side of the room and moved between the rest of the young people sharing the lobby with them. All seemed to be around their age, sitting together in groups of two or more. Some ate their food while discussing their adventure, others sat around the gigantic plasma television arguing over what movie to pick, and a few of them were with their… significant others, so to speak. She ignored those the fastest.

She felt eyes in her back, and when she turned around she noticed one of them looking away, trying to casually make it look like he wasn't staring. He looked around twenty, dark skin and short black hair combed stylishly. Next to him sat a girl quite a bit taller and with a muscular complexion, her long red hair tied in a ponytail. She wore a white tank top and had a dark green hoodie tied around her waist. The spark in her eyes sent shivers down her spine.

They were the only two who looked like respectable trainers, and she had to stop herself from walking to their table and challenging them then and there.

"I need to fight something." The words left her mouth before she had time to process them.

"You mean like…" Barry looked at her, concerned.

"A Pokemon battle, "she clarified. "But I'm guessing it'd be rude to challenge people when they're trying to eat."

"Yeah…" he nodded nervously, "maybe a bit."

She considered her options for about half a second before getting up from the couch.

"Let's go to the gym," she declared.

"Oh boy," Barry muttered under his breath. "Come on Niss, we just got here. I thought we could stay for a few d…"

"We're not going to challenge the Gym Leader, dumbass," she grabbed the sleeve of his shirt and pulled him up. "We'll fight their disciples and get a feel of what's waiting for us in there."

Barry formed a smile, the kind that lit his eyes like fire.

"I can get behind that," he said, punching his left palm with his right fist. "Whoever defeats more people gets another point."

"You're on."

 

* * *

 

 

Getting to the gym ended up being quite the difficult task, although not for the reasons she would've imagined.

As they made their way through the busy streets of Hearthome they had to stop themselves constantly from just… spending some time in every place they saw. Her mouth watered with possibilities as they ran across every single temptation imaginable. An ice cream shop whichcarried every possible flavor under the sun was the first thing they saw, and she had to practically drag Barry while promising they would come back later.

That wasn't the worst of it. A bakery which smelled like dreams right out of the oven, a shopping mall that sold every Pokeball, accessory and Battle Item she could possibly imagine, a clothes shop that sported a red coat and boots she fell in love with, and even a gigantic arcade which looked like a neon-nightmare of fun.

And then there were the parks, or at least what she called them in lack of a better name. Every few blocks or so they saw springs surrounded by small fields of flowers or playgrounds full of comfortable benches which seemed so inviting it almost hurt not to sleep a few minutes there. Wherever they went they couldn't take their eyes off the city itself, almost like it was trying to charm them. Which made it embarrassing when they finally arrived at the gym and she almost ran into a wall due to being distracted by one of the local businesses.

"Yeah, I was about to say. Careful ahead." Barry chuckled.

"Shut up," she replied, adjusting her hat while trying to hide her blush.

The building was… quite smaller than she expected, especially for a city like Hearthome. For one it didn't seem wide enough to accommodate a proper arena. Marble stairs led to a thick pair of wooden doors reinforced with iron, and from the sides of them rose two small towers made of really old stone. The entire place gave her the feel of a small castle, which was a bizarre choice for a gym.

Two people stood at each side of the doors, probably in their mid twenties and wearing unnaturally formal black suits with a white shirt and black tie underneath. The girl was the first to speak as they made their way up the stairs.

"Can we help you?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"We are Lady Fantina's entourage," clarified the man, bowing to them ever so lightly. "What brings you here?"

Inyssa and Barry exchanged looks, just to make sure the other had felt the same chill down their spine. Something about their voice and the heavy shadows they carried under their eyes…

"We're looking for a good fight." Barry finally replied, showing a confident smile. "Any of you up to it?"

"And we would like to meet the Gym Leader as well," she added.

The woman arched the corner of her lip downward, and turned to her partner. He closed his very tired looking eyes and sighed, both hands on his hips.

"You can't meet her," he spoke as if he'd been repeating those words endlessly, "and we can't fight you either."

"What?" Barry jumped in place, taking the hands out of his pockets. "Isn't this the gym?"

"Indeed, but I'm afraid Lady Fantina isn't available at the moment," The woman said, crossing her arms, "and we are not allowed to take on challengers unless it's in very specific circumstances."

She felt her spirits drop lower than the floor, and the exhaustion and anxiety she'd been trying to hold back began to buzz around her head.

"Are you kidding me? Again?" Barry protested, shoulders low. "It's just like in Oreburgh."

"Does any Gym Leader in this region do their fucking job!?" She added, heat and anger imbuing her voice.

"Don't talk about Lady Fantina like that!" The man took a step forward, his ears turning red. "She is the greatest, most wondrous leader in all of Sinnoh!"

"And she doesn't have time for every second class trainer who comes to her door," his partner nodded. "If you wish to have a chance to challenge her you should know that you need to take the tr…"

Air escaped her lips as her body froze, and both of her eyes opened like plates. The man took a step back, sight fixated on something behind Inyssa.

She stared at them in confusion and opened her mouth to speak, and that's when the cold hit her.

She looked down to her feet. Her shadow had become pitch black, and before she could process what was happening it changed in shape, elongating through the ground like tendrils of darkness. Something started to emerge from it, and her heart stopped for a moment.

A robust, purple creature made from shadows ascended from the darkness behind her body, its blood red eyes glued to hers. Black spikes rose from its back and below where its nose should've been she saw a cold, unwavering smile of white teeth. She recognized the Pokemon, which didn't mean it didn't freak her the fuck out.

"ARCEUS F…!" Barry jumped backwards with so much force he tripped on the steps, falling on his butt in a manner that would've made her laugh in any other situation. "What is that!?"

"L…Lady Fantina's Gengar," she heard the man's voice behind her. "What… brings you here?"

The ghost Pokemon extended one of its short, purple arms to the two guards, its eyes never moving from Inyssa. She took a step back and tried to wipe the horrified look off her face. In its hands was a small, ornate piece of paper that it handed to the woman, who grabbed it carefully and started reading it.

"It says…  _Let Her In_?" she read it with a mix of confusion and incredulousness in her tone. "Is she serious?"

Gengar let out a chuckle that made her skin crawl and started to dissolve again in the darkness of her shadow, until it disappeared completely. She'd still not moved an inch.

 _Sleeping tonight ain't gonna be easy,_  she thought.

"Well…" the male guard swallowed, and his eyes went from his partner to the two kids, "you heard her. It seems our Fair Lady wishes to have a meeting, so you should not make her wait ."

Inyssa closed her eyes and tried to push the burning spider-web of thoughts in her mind deeper, to a place where it wouldn't bother her for a while. She would deal with that chaos later, in the darkness of her room where no one could see her face. Right now she had business to take care of.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," she turned to Barry, giving him a thumbs up.

"Sure!" He replied with a smile that wasn't quite right. "I'll just go to the ice cream store in the meantime and eat until I can't move."

 

* * *

 

 

Halfway in she realized she forgot to ask the guards what room the Gym Leader was in, but by then it was too late. Besides, she could almost make up a bit of light through one of the doors on the second floor. She made her way through the ornate black marble staircase, feeling the place get colder with every step she took.

Reaching the door, she put a hand over the knob and opened it carefully, cold sweat beginning to form on the back of her neck. She opened it to reveal a medium sized room, with merely a white table in the middle of it, standing on top of a red and gold carpet. In the furthest corner of the table sat a woman, a cup of wine on one hand and what seemed like a small book on the other.

"Inyssa! Welcome, my dear," she spoke with a deep voice, smooth as silk. "Glad to see you could make it. Have a seat, would you?"

Inyssa stood in place, not knowing what to do. Was this the Gym Leader? Why did she know her name?

The woman was probably in her early forties, her pale and oval shaped face covered with the slightest hints of makeup. Her violet hair was tied in four buns which formed an X behind her head. She wore a full-length, strapless purple dress which was quite… close fitting, if she had to choose a term to describe it. Small amounts of white glitter covered it from the top to the tip of the skirt, and close to her hip there was what appeared to be a yellow ribbon with the shape of a plus sign.

She'd never seen such a lavish outfit outside of maybe a wedding, and here this woman was wearing it for her afternoon snack hour. There was something strangely familiar about her appearance, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Are you the Gym Leader?" she asked, her voice thin.

"Yours truly," she nodded. "My name is Fantina Anabelle Katelyn Dusk. You might have heard of me from my modeling career, or perhaps my title as Master of Pokemon Contests. But for the purposes of this meeting I will say that, yes, I am the current Gym Leader of Hearthome."

She couldn't help but let out a small gasp; so that was it. She'd seen this woman before, many years ago when she'd competed against her mother in the finals of a very important Pokemon Contest. The inside of her mouth turned sour, and she couldn't help but make a face at the unpleasant thought.

Contests… she'd always hated them, completely unrelated to the fact that they were her mother's job. She saw them as nothing but a mockery of real battling; using Pokemon for little dances and artistic shows while dressing them in stupid clothing, a complete waste of time.

"I'm Inyssa Dawn," she replied, tone dry, "pleased to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine," Fantina said, articulating with her free hand toward the chair to her left. "Once again, please have a seat."

She walked towards her with caution in her step, and slowly sat down on the white chair covered in gold ornaments. It was extremely cold. On top of the table there was one plate, which contained only three slices of blue cheese and a parsley leaf. Next to it was the small book the woman had been reading, its title…

"Springy the Bunnelby?" the question came out of her mouth before she could stop it. "Isn't that a comic book for kids?"

"Ah! I see you're familiar with it," her eyes widened, excitement clear in her voice. "Do you also enjoy them?"

She gulped, saddened that she couldn't take a step back due to being on a chair, "Uh… I mean, yeah when I was like, six."

"A true masterpiece." The woman closed her eyes and let out a deep, perfect sigh. "It takes great talent to create entertainment suitable for both children and adults, don't you think?"

Inyssa looked around, trying to make sure there weren't any hidden cameras and this wasn't someone playing a prank on her. She didn't know what she expected from the so-called terrifying master of ghost Pokemon that was rumored to be Hearthome's Gym Leader, but this definitely wasn't it.

"I…" she stammered, trying to find her words, "I'm… sorry for the rudeness, but why did you call me here?"

"Of course, I apologize," she put the glass filled with blood-red wine on the table, and showed her a smile of perfect white teeth. "Sarah contacted me three days ago, telling me you would be coming by. She asked me to keep an eye on you."

"S…Sarah?" she asked, brow furrowed. "You mean like… Barry's mom?"

"Yes, we are very good friends she and I." Fantina smiled, her white gloves glistening.

Sarah's words came to her mind, something that she'd told him just before they left Eterna City. She'd entrusted someone in Hearthome to look after them, one of her close friends.

"…and after I got the news from my dear Gardenia about what incredible trainers you two are, well I just had to meet you personally."

"Dear? Wait, are you two…?" she started talking but the woman interrupted her.

"So there's your answer," she stated. "To be honest there are a few things I'd like to discuss with you, Inyssa, but I think it's better if our little chat starts with one topic in particular."

She shifted in her seat, not comfortable with literally anything inside that room.

"Yeah? What topic?"

Fantina leaned forward, putting her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her hands. Her deep, black eyes went to hers and Inyssa suddenly felt like the temperature of the room dropped drastically.

"Tell me, darling," she spoke, almost singing her words, "why haven't you opened the letter Johanna sent you?"

Inyssa blinked, not processing what she'd just heard.

"W-what?"

"Your mother's letter," she repeated. "You haven't read it yet. She is very worried, you know."

Her body moved before her mind could catch up to it. She got up from the chair so violently she almost threw it to the ground, and her feet carried her to the other side of the room. She grabbed the doorknob and tried to turn it, to no avail. The door was locked.

"Let me go."

"Interesting. I see your attitude was not exaggerated," Fantina muttered to herself. "Inyssa, I just wish to talk. I assure you I have no ill intentions."

Heat traveled from her stomach to the rest of her body, especially her face and hands. Needles of anger pricked at her fingertips.

"What do you care?" she spat at the woman. "How do you even know about…?"

"Johanna is also a very close… well, I would say even the word friend doesn't describe it properly," she sighed. "We used to be partners, back in the day. I taught her everything she knows about Contests."

"I don't care," was her simple reply. "That doesn't give you the right to ask about my personal life."

"True," she nodded. "I can't say I'm well informed about the relationship you and Johanna have, and it would be wrong of me to judge you for your decisions on the matter. However I do believe that her worry is well founded, from what I've heard about you."

"Yeah?" she asked, trying to suppress a twitch in her eye. "What have you heard about me?"

Fantina delicately moved a strand of hair from her face. The smile she'd displayed before had all but disappeared, and the force behind her eyes was almost enough to intimidate Inyssa.

"By some accounts I've heard that you're a dedicated, powerful trainer with nerves of steel and an admirable spirit," she said. "By others, however, I've gotten the impression that you're a reckless teenager with an extremely short fuse who doesn't listen to anyone and ends up in deadly situations at an alarming rate. I called you here because I wanted to draw my own conclusions on the matter; I'm a very good judge of character, you see."

"And what's your diagnosis, doc?" she imbued her voice with the most obvious fake gentleness that she could. "Because I'm afraid I might have come down with a terrible case of  _Go Fuck Yourself_."

Fantina let out a short chuckle, "Ah... quaint. I can see a bit of both in you, but I consider it too early to make a statement just yet," she leaned on the chair, arched back like a Purrloin. "You have that Dawn fire in your bones for sure, which makes it unfortunate that you lack Johanna's grace or Shadi's temperance…"

She kicked one of the edges of the table with all the strength she had in her. Her intention might have been toppling it over as a good expression of how she was feeling but the table was heavy and all she accomplished was shaking it a bit, one of the candle holders falling to its side. Fantina simply shook her head and sighed.

"I am not them!" she yelled with enough force to hurt her throat. "I am sick and fucking tired of getting compared to everyone in my family!"

"It will keep happening, I'm afraid."

Fantina's legs uncrossed and she got on her feet with the elegance of a petal floating in the wind. She took a few steps towards her and the sound of her stilettos hitting the ground felt like someone was pecking her brain.

"People will keep comparing you to those who've come before you," she repeated, "because that's what people do."

"Why?" she asked, sounding more desperate than angry. "I don't get it, everyone makes such a big fucking deal about it." She crossed her arms, unconsciously trying to make herself smaller. "Who cares about my mom or Shadi? They have nothing to do with me or with my career as a trainer."

"From an ideal standpoint you're right," nodded Fantina, "but the reality is that a comparison between them and you is inevitable. They both became famous for very different, but important reasons. Their accomplishments are still fresh in Sinnoh's memory."

"I…" she felt her breathing getting heavy, "I don't care. I am not them."

Fantina shot her a look which was hard to describe. She felt like the woman was staring directly at her soul.

"Tell me something, Inyssa." She placed a finger on her chin. "If I remember correctly you wish to become the Champion, do you not?"

"Y-yes," She lowered her head, "more than anything."

"Then you will have to learn how to deal with people constantly comparing you to others," she explained, raising her hand, palm up. "Do you know what characterizes a proper Champion?"

"They're… very strong?" She offered.

"Well yes, that is an essential component, but it's hardly all there is to it. Since old times the Champion has been a paragon of the best traits our land has to offer. They have all been exceptionally virtuous and kind to accompany their overwhelming strength, especially after the war waged against Kanto," she spoke with passion, hand curled into a fist. "However when I look at you I see none of these things. A spiteful child who can't stop herself from verbally assaulting anyone who gets a rise of her will never be fit to be the Champion."

She grit her teeth, palms white from the force her fingers were applying to them. She wanted to yell at her, she wanted to say anything to defend herself or to simply hurt her, but she couldn't. All the rage and stress she'd been trying to repress rose up to her throat, choking her when she opened her mouth to speak. Instead she simply looked down at the floor and tried to contain the sting she began to feel in her eyes.

"Why do you care?" she finally asked after what seemed like an entire minute. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I'm rooting for you, Inyssa."

She felt one of Fantina's hands on top of her shoulder. It was cold, strangely so considering she was wearing gloves.

"What happened in your family was… unfortunate," she spoke with a sorrowful tone. "None of you deserved it. Not Johanna, one of the people I love most; not Shadi who was a... very dedicated person; and definitely not you," Inyssa looked up at her. Why had her face gone dark after mentioning Shadi?. "I can see you're a good kid despite all that brews in that head of yours, and the least I owe to your mother and Sarah is to try and help you."

Inyssa bit her lip, feeling her legs shake just a bit. There was no anger left inside her, just cold apathy.

"If this is what you call help then I hope you never become a therapist," she said, tone dry.

"I apologize," Fantina smiled, "but you needed to hear that. I know what you're capable of, Inyssa. I believe you have a chance of becoming the Champion, but you have to learn to conduct yourself around others."

Inyssa took a hand to her face, wiping the wetness running down her cheek.

"What do you want me to do?" she shrugged, pride taking the back seat in her mind.

"For now? Go have a great day, and when you have time, reflect on yourself," Fantina turned around and walked towards her chair, her hips moving to the sides with every step.

"I'm gonna drown myself in ice cream."

"Sounds wonderful," she replied, back to Inyssa. "As for your second task, well… do you know how I deal with challengers in my gym?"

She shook her head weakly, which prompted the old woman to smile proudly.

"Being a famous contest star means I don't quite have time to accept every youngster that comes to my Gym as an opponent. As such, I have a rule to only battle four times per week."

"Oh god, please tell me there's not a queue."

"Not quite," she said. "Every trainer who wishes to challenge me will need to pass a test designed by yours truly. This trial occurs every Monday morning, which gives the competitors one chance per week."

She forced her brain to start working again, asking it to give her the current day. It was Tuesday.

"Where is the trial held?" she asked, feeling some of her strength coming back to her limbs.

"East of here, in the northern part of Route 209 lies a very special place," Fantina sat down once more, crossing her legs and picking up her fork. "Locals call it the Lost Tower, and it's rumored to be one of the oldest buildings in all of Sinnoh. The trial will take place in the subterranean chambers underneath it."

She closed her hand into a fist, and the smallest hint of a smile appeared on her face. Battling, now that was something she could do very well.

"I'll be there," she assured the Gym Leader, fire in her eyes, "and I'll show you why I deserve to become the Champion."

"I sincerely hope you do," she nodded, taking a sip of her cup of wine. "You have six days to train and think about things. Make good use of them."

Without another word Inyssa turned around and headed towards the door. She almost made her way to it when she heard Fantina's voice again.

"And again, I know it isn't my place to interfere, but…" her tone was a lot warmer than before. "Please, open that letter. Tell your mother you're okay."

"I will," she replied, no hint of anger in her voice. "Goodbye."


	19. What You Lack - Part 1

Barry roamed through the streets of Hearthome, head down and path aimless.

He passed the ice cream store, barely paying any attention to it before walking past it. He'd lied to Niss; any cravings he might've had for the cold, sweet dessert had been replaced with that bothersome feeling of unease setting in the pit of his stomach.

He kicked a can of soda laying on the side of the street. It went flying towards a nearby trash bin and scared a couple of Starly, who flew away at the sound of the crash. That felt good. Kicking, walking fast, stomping his feet on the ground with every step he took, it all helped to slowly get rid of the unusual heat running through his body. It took him a few minutes to realize why exactly he felt that way, and by the time he got the answer he regretted it.

Niss had been given permission to speak with the Gym Leader. Of course she had, he felt stupid just thinking that for once people would treat them equally. Why would they? She was the better trainer, as everyone who met them immediately realized. Infinitely more dedicated and smart than the sidekick she brought along with her everywhere.

He wondered why the Champion didn't just surrender the title already, since Niss was so friggin great and all.

His shoulders dropped, fingers curling strongly into fists. He shouldn't think those things; none of what was happening was his friend's fault, and being bitter about the situation wouldn't help. Niss had been through a lot of really bad things, and the least she deserved was getting some recognition for her effort.

A sudden gust of wind hit him from behind, ruffling up his hair and bringing him back to reality. He blinked, standing up straight, and looked to his right to one of the most stunning buildings he'd ever seen.

He had somehow arrived to what seemed like a cathedral, standing painfully out of place between two tall skyscrapers. Its main tower rose to at least forty feet, not quite as tall as some of the structures he'd seen in the city but certainly impressive. It was built with smooth, pale stone which reflected the light of the sun. The enormous windows at the side were made of stained glass, depicting shapes that he couldn't quite recognize from afar.

How had he gotten there? Where even was he? He figured he was heading towards the Pokemon Center and just let his feet do the walking, but he would've remembered such a place if he'd seen it before.

He passed through the steel gates, too curious to turn back. A short path lead to the oval shaped hole that was the cathedral's entrance, and two small but impressively laid out flower patches rested at his side coating the air with a sweet, musky scent. As he approached he noticed that the walls and pillars were each engraved with distinct, spiraling patterns only visible from up close.

The inside was quite a contrast, though equally impressive. To his left was a marble pedestal about half his size, with a bowl on top of it full of what he assumed was holy water. To his left lay another one, holding a small box with a stamp that read  _Donations_. He washed his hands and deposited some change in that box before proceeding.

In front of him two rows of ornate wooden pews ran through most of the length of the room, stopping just a few feet before the altar. He made his way towards it, the sound of his feet against the ceramic echoing all around him. In between the thick stone pillars at the sides of the seats he spied some of the stained glass he'd seen from outside.

Most of them were people he didn't know, dressed in robes and garments from times long past. Others he recognized easily, like the cheery Mew or the three pixie legendaries, their piercing golden eyes staring down at him with an intensity which made him nervous. With the exception of Uxie, of course, whose eyelids remained always closed. He felt a strange warmth behind his eyes, which disappeared as soon as he blinked.

Before he knew it he arrived at the feet of the altar, and his eyes went directly to the opposite wall, where the last glass picture stood. It clearly showed the peak of Mt Coronet, as seen from the city, standing proud and mighty as he'd seen it just a few days before. At the very top a blinding light shone all over the mountain, parting the sky in half. He looked at it for what felt like minutes, mouth slightly agape and a stunned look on his face. What was he…?

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

He shook his head, mind clearing of that strange fog. He blinked a few times, disoriented, and turned towards the voice he'd just heard.

A tall woman stood a few feet from him, posture rigid and hands behind her back. She wore a long, black coat that reached to her ankles, with puffy frills at the neck and base of it. Her straight, blonde hair reached to her hips and part of it obscured her left eye. She was pale, slightly more than Niss, and her skin seemed to reflect light the same way the stones of the cathedral did.

She must have realized how long Barry stared at her, and tried to stiffle a laugh. He felt heat run up to his cheeks.

"H-hi!" he stammered, bowing to the woman. "I'm… I'm Barry, hi."

"Hello Barry," she smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I apologize for ruining your concentration, it's just that I don't see many kids who are interested in these sort of artistic pieces."

Her voice made him flinch. It wasn't unpleasant; far, far from it. It traveled through the still air between them and hit him gently, easing the knot that had formed in his stomach and washing it away with ease. He felt painfully aware of every word she spoke, every movement of her mouth; the way her lips gave shape to those sounds and turned them into something calming and powerful. The moment that thought appeared in his mind he shook his head, aware of how much he was blushing.

"I… just kinda ended up here by accident," he admitted. A small wrinkle formed at the edges of her stormy grey eyes. Another smile. "I just got to Hearthome so... uh…"

"You still looked very interested in it, and I think that's what matters. This really is one of the most striking places in all of Sinnoh," she looked up at the stained glass once more. "I like to come here whenever I pass through this city. It feels like a memory from a world that's no longer with us."

He narrowed his eyes at her, "You're not... from here?"

"Not technically." She crossed her arms beneath her chest. "I consider all of Sinnoh to be my home, but I suppose if we were to be technical you could say I'm from Celestic Town."

"Oh yeah, the place with the ruins, right? What's it like?"

Her expression changed multiple times within a few moments, ranging from a deep momentary sadness to a prideful smile. He blinked in confusion, not having any idea how he'd managed to notice all that.

"It's a small town, and not many people visit. It holds an ancient history that few places do, and even without the polish and grandeur of a city like this…" she looked around, taking in a deep sigh, "...it's still beautiful in its own way."

"O-oh…" was his well thought out response. "I'm from Twinleaf. It's cool there, lots of trees and stuff. Kinda quiet."

The woman's laughter forced him to take a step back. The tingly feeling behind his eyes came back and for a moment he seemed to understand, at least somewhat. There was a subtle, latent strength to the way she carried herself. Every movement of her body looked perfect and premeditated, every word seemed so carefully built, and every laugh was a small ember escaping the raging fire he felt burning inside her.

Then the feeling disappeared again, and that understanding left him completely, leaving an aching void inside his chest.

"I've been to the Twinleaf pine-tree plantations and the outskirts of Lake Verity, they really are a sight to behold. I enjoy traveling the region, and seeing with my own eyes each piece of beauty my dear Sinnoh possesses. All so different, and yet the same in essence." A wistful sigh escaped her lips, and Barry had to force himself to stop staring at them. "Oh, sorry for my rudeness. I didn't even ask what you were doing here in Hearthome."

The question caught him by surprise, and he went through a lot of lies inside his head before he realized he had no reason not to tell her the truth. Why did he feel so defensive all of a sudden?

"The Gym," he said, only a moment later realizing she needed more context. "I'm a trainer, I'm taking on the League challenge. Wanna become the Champion and all that."

She turned her eyes to him, her lips curling into a smile, "Oh, really? How interesting."

Barry felt as if lightning had struck him. The grey of her eyes came to life, bringing the whole strength of their inner storm on top of him, paralyzing him completely. That was not the gaze of an old (was she old? He honestly couldn't tell if she was twenty or forty) woman who was slightly interested in him, but the glare of a Pokemon about to jump on its prey.

He realized then what was so entrancing about her. She was beautiful, yes, but not in the same way as Niss or Gardenia, not in the subjective and biased way a person would judge her. Her beauty was something deep and unshakeable and dangerous that one had to admire from afar. Most beautiful people he'd seen were like the painting of a fire; this woman was the fire itself.

She blinked once, and that oppressive feeling disappeared. He could breathe again.

"I'm a trainer too, you know," she said, breaking eye contact. "Perhaps one day we'll meet in battle. I certainly hope so."

"Y-you do?"

"Absolutely. You have the spirit of a true trainer, something very few possess. I can feel it burning inside your chest. Warm, expansive and very gentle." She moved her head to the side slightly with each word, enjoying them like a delicacy. "A pleasant feeling indeed."

Not a single thing she said made sense to him, and even though he should've been doubting the woman was even sane he found himself clinging to her every word. Especially…

"T-thanks…" He smiled back. "But I'm not that good. My friend Niss is much better than me, you should see her."

"Is she? Then I'm even more excited." She moved forward and backward on the ball of her feet. "But please don't sell yourself short, Barry. I am not joking when I say I feel a tremendous strength inside of you. And when the time comes…" She paused for a second, and formed a daunting smile. "I'm sure you'll show the entire world what you're capable of."

He didn't know what to answer, didn't think he even could. An entire minute seemed to pass before she spoke again, right after turning around towards the exit on the opposite side of the room.

"Now I'm afraid I have business to take care of," she said. "But it really was a pleasure to meet you, Barry. I am certain we will see each other again, but until then…"

"Y-yeah!" he came back to his senses, once again bowing slightly to her. "Thanks for the kind words… uh…"

She smiled with her back toward him, tilting her head slightly to the side.

"You can call me Cynthia."

And before he had a chance to say anything else she walked out of the cathedral, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa would've liked to say she came back to the Pokemon Center with fire in her eyes and determination in her gut, but that couldn't have been further away from the truth. Her feet hurt, her heart pounded just a bit too strongly and her mind was a royal mess from the events of the day.

So she decided to make a list to keep herself in order. Buy food, something nutritious and with some vegetables sprinkled in, something that would aid her sleep that night. Talk to Barry, inform him of the trial situation and pretend not to notice that something was bothering him. She would address that later, right now she was in no condition to have another emotional talk. Take a shower, heat turned up to the highest setting and the sound of the pouring water distracting her from her thoughts. Let the scalding water hurt her just enough for that.

And finally tuck herself in bed early, so that she'd be ready to train when the morning came. She went about these steps almost automatically, her mind wandering someplace else and herself feeling not entirely within her body. She hung her white cotton hat on top of the night lamp and threw herself beneath the sheets, taking in the fresh, lavender smell of them. She closed her eyes, extinguishing everything, and finally felt the weight of that day falling on top of her.

She remembered Fantina's advice. She remembered her mother's letter and how predictably sappy it ended up being once she gathered the courage to look at it. And she remembered her sister, and that email.

It didn't hit her until that moment that she'd been walking on the same steps as her those past weeks. She'd been to the same abandoned house, met the same Pokemon and even managed to catch it. She'd met people who knew her, who knew Shadi and what an incredible person she was. And even after meeting Inyssa, someone so unqualified to even reach her boots, those people seemed to believe in her. Believed that she would one day surpass her and leave all of her accomplishments behind.

She turned to the side of the bed, half her face buried in her pillow. Her eyes stung, and she could hear the beating of her own heart in her ears. She tried to retreat to her sleep, where none of those thoughts would reach her, and finally accomplished it after only a few minutes of crying.

It ended up being a pleasant night, at least when compared to the past weeks.

 

* * *

 

 

The remaining six days passed by quickly for Barry, or at least quicker than he would've expected with a deadline hanging above his head. He'd always been bad with those, the pressure of a time limit making the days longer and unbearable and him a nervous wreck.

But he had Niss now to get him through it, or at the very least part of her. His friend seemed somewhat out of it during the time they spent together in Hearthome.

He knew their Pokemon needed to get through the training of their lives if they were to have a chance of beating that trial, but she seemed to be taking it just a bit too seriously. Every day they woke up at seven and headed to the outskirts of town to work on their basics and fight wild Pokemon, and they wouldn't come back until at the earliest two in the afternoon when their stomachs started growling. They would have lunch, their Pokemon would recover and a couple hours later they'd be back at it again until nightfall.

He had to practically drag her then to explore the town and at least make an effort to enjoy their time there. But with only a couple of free hours a day the best they could do was a movie, an ice cream date or a short time at the local arcade. She seemed to enjoy it, but not to the extent he expected.

She was caught up in her own head again, and he hated himself for not knowing how to help her. He was sure something must have happened when she talked with the Gym Leader, but when he asked about it she simply told him that the woman had personally invited them to the trial, and nothing more. Another thing for the pile of stuff Niss didn't trust to share with him, another lie. Part of him felt like he should've been getting used to it, but he wasn't.

Something strange happened the day before the trial. They were roaming the outskirts of Route 208 as usual, and all of their Pokemon were concentrated on a specific exercise they've prepared for them. Pedri and Shadi used their fins and scythes respectively on small boulders, attempting to cut them in half with a single blow. And close to them Enma coated himself in fire and used Flame Wheel on a row of pillars with empty bottles on top of them, trying to maneuver between them without knocking any over.

They practically had nothing to do for the moment, which is probably why Niss addressed him.

"Hey, Barry," she spoke with a low tone, walking towards him with her arms crossed. "Can I ask you something stupid?"

He stared at her stunned for a moment, then composed the biggest smile he could and threw his arms behind his head, attempting to look casual.

"I thought stupid questions were my thing, but sure."

She looked to the floor, and a heavy shadow fell her eyes. She stammered for a few seconds before finding her words.

"Do you think… I mean, when you look at me…" she bit her lip, eyebrows knit together, "can you… imagine me as the Champion? Do you think I can really do it... as myself?"

The question caught him off guard, so much that he had to drop his lighthearted façade.

"What? Of course I do," he replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You're the strongest trainer I know, if you can't become the Champion then no one can."

"Even if I'm a huge asshole?" She curved the side of her lips into a half smile. "I feel like you'd be a better candidate. You have the attitude for it." He couldn't help but notice a hint of bitterness in her voice.

"No one cares about attitude," he shrugged. "You just gotta be strong and people will follow you anyway. That's what you've always said and it's still true."

Niss opened her mouth to say something, but stopped herself. She turned around towards her Pokemon, shoulders firm.

"I guess we'll see," she said, dryly. "I'll give it my all tomorrow. You better do the same."

"Don't feel bad if you fall short compared to me."

He immediately regretted those words, especially since there had been no hint of teasing or joking about it. He was completely serious; he wouldn't fall behind her anymore.

Niss nodded, and went back to training without another word.

 

* * *

 

 

The morning of the trial came and Inyssa arrived at the Lost Tower almost before anyone else. Crossing half of Route 209 barely after the sun started rising in the horizon proved to be difficult, although not for the reasons she imagined. An expansive fog covered the fields of grass and the main path, becoming thicker the more they approached the structure. The tower itself wasn't as impressive as she imagined, barely a couple floors tall and with the shape of an old obelisk. Cold seemed to emanate from its stone entrance.

Not counting herself or Barry, there were eighteen other trainers around them by the time the clock struck eight. She'd seen a few of them hanging around the Pokemon Center.

Most of them looked weak, with the exception of two people standing at the edge of the path, engaged in a conversation she couldn't quite hear. Fancy boy and redhead girl, the two trainers she'd seen her first day in Hearthome and hadn't ran into since then. Their belts carried six Pokeballs each, and their eyes and posture told her they were ready to tackle any situation, just like her. She felt a jolt of excitement.

"Greetings, everyone."

The voice made her jump, the back of her head clashing against Barry's chin and causing him to whisper a soft curse. Most kids around her gasped too, one of them even dropping their Pokédex to the ground.

Fantina stood in front of the dark entrance to the tower, looking up at all of them. Her hair was styled the same way as when she met her, but she'd changed from the frivolous dress to a more practical purple suit with a yellow tie and white shirt. Very simple, and yet Inyssa couldn't believe how easily she pulled it off.

"Oh my gosh, is that Fantina!?" A girl asked at her right, tone full of excitement.

"The ghost master…" another boy added from someplace within the fog.

"She's so pretty!" One of them gasped.

Barry couldn't help but chuckle after hearing that, and Niss rolled her eyes. She looked again towards the two mysterious trainers; they didn't seem very impressed with the Gym Leader either.

"Oh please, please." Fantina raised a hand, and everyone stopped talking. "You are all too kind. It is true, I am Fantina, the Gym Leader of Hearthome. I assume all of you are here for the trial?"

A vague cacophony of nods and affirmations resounded through the air.

"Fantastic. We will begin shortly, but first I must explain the rules and the objective of this particular test." She started walking towards the middle of the group, hands behind her back. "Does anyone know what this place is?"

There was a short silence before one of the girls in front of Inyssa answered.

"Isn't it a cemetery?"

"Almost, but not quite. Anyone else… yes, you?" She looked left and pointed with her pale finger at the dark haired boy Inyssa had been keeping an eye on.

"This used to be a temple, but it was turned into a memorial recently," he replied, hand still raised firmly. His voice was deep and rich. "No people or Pokemon are actually buried here, but there are plenty of engravings depicting and honoring the victims of the seven year war with Kanto."

"Correct, and very concise may I add. Since this is such a sacred place none of you will be allowed to go to the upper floors, instead the trial will take place entirely within the underground tunnels. Your task is to make your way through its labyrinthic layout and reach the very bottom. As for what waits for you inside…" a soft, cold chuckle escaped her lips. "My disciples have trained plenty of ghost Pokemon to halt your advance, so ready yourselves."

Inyssa bit her thumb softly, foot tapping on the wet grass. She figured the test would be something like that, and indeed she'd prepared herself for a fight against multiple ghost Pokemon. The only problem was the maze part; for one she didn't have a very good sense of direction, and worse of all tunnels weren't entirely different from caves so she wasn't sure her claustrophobia wouldn't kick in the second she set a foot in there.

"Oh, I forgot to mention something."

Everyone stopped talking amongst themselves and turned again to Fantina, who shot them a dubious smile, her eyes glistening with malice.

"You will be entering the tower in groups of four, and you'll each be permitted only three Pokemon."

She felt her blood run cold, and next to her Barry's eyes opened wide. Groups? She couldn't mean…

"Does that mean that if one of us fails, we all do?" One of the boys close to her asked the question in everyone's mind.

"Indeed," said Fantina, one hand raised and the other one on her hip. "Think of it as a team building and leadership exercise; these are things that you will need in order to become a great trainer. You will have an hour to complete the trial. And talking about time, you have five minutes to choose your team and the Pokemon you'll use. Pick wisely."

Everyone started moving and running around while Inyssa stood still with more than a few  _fucks_  and  _shits_  and  _you can't be fucking serious_  running through her head.

Groups. They had to complete the exercise in groups. Her sight turned towards Fantina and she caught her smiling, and while it wasn't directed at her it sure felt like it was. Was it on purpose? Was that why she'd given her that talk about what a true Champion should act like? She felt her ears turning hot and had to stop herself from going over there and smacking that perfect face of hers.

"…are obviously gonna form a team," she realized Barry was talking to her. "But we need two more people, who do we choose?"

"I… am not going to lie, I have no idea," she shrugged, perhaps a bit too strongly. "I didn't think… I thought we'd do this alone."

Just as she was about to go ask Fantina if they could form groups of two she saw something approaching her from the mist. Fancy boy and redhead girl locked eyes with her and she froze in place. Were they…? No, they couldn't…

"You two," spoke the guy, arms crossed over his white shirt. He had a slight accent that she had trouble locating, "join our team."

A few moments passed where Inyssa made sure she didn't suddenly develop a hearing problem. She tilted her head to the side, mouth slightly open.

"Huh?"

"Yeah, like… an introduction, maybe?" Barry added, tone sardonic. "Nice to meet you and all that?"

The girl formed a lovely smile and put a hand over fancy boy's shoulder. Her bare arms were thick like bars of steel, and Inyssa imagined she could easily pick her up and tear her in half.

"Sorry kids, Percy here ain't exactly a people person." Her voice was high and raspy, full of strength. "You can call me Reiko. What he was trying to say is that we'd like to have you on our team, since you look like the only other barely respectable trainers around here."

She didn't know whether to feel honored or insulted, so she went with a mix of both.

"And what makes you think you're good enough for our team?" she asked, curling her lips into a smile. Truth be told she had no problem with teaming up with them, but she couldn't pass the opportunity to say that.

"Hah! Half pint over here has some nerve, doesn't she?" Reiko leaned forward until their noses almost touched. Her smile was just a bit too willd for her taste.

"My name is Inyssa," she didn't back down an inch. "Call me that again and I'll…"

"We both have four badges," Percy interrupted, putting a hand between her and Reiko. "We saw you train from afar. Judging by your Pokemon you can't have more than two, which is why it would be to your benefit to team up with us."

Barry furrowed his brow, "Wait, hold on. You were spying on us?"

"We just happened to be walking by," said Percy, smiling for the first time. His teeth were as white as the impeccable shirt he wore.

"And we were impressed," nodded Reiko, jovial tone. "That Monferno of yours is what I call a real Pokemon, yes sir."

"And that Prinplup has a grace and technique I've hardly seen before," added Percy. "Now, do you want us in your team or not? Five minutes are running out."

Inyssa looked at Barry, looking for confirmation. Her friend simply shrugged and shot her a look that seemed to say  _they seem good enough._

She gave them an unenthusiastic thumbs up, "Alright. Hope you can pull your own weight."

Percy gave her a short nod accompanied by a satisfied smile, while Reiko let out a hearty laugh that showed her sharp teeth.

"That's the spirit, shortie!" She punched her palm and Inyssa could swear sparks came out of her eyes. "We'll beat those ghost fuckers so bad they'll have to bring them back to life a second time."

Inyssa smiled. She liked this girl, she decided. She then looked at Percy, and thought that while he seemed to have a stick up his ass the size of Mt Coronet he wasn't that bad either. She could work with people like that.

"One minute until the trial begins! Get ready!" Fantina shouted, her voice filling the entire field. For an insant her eyes seemed to meet Inyssa's. "I hope you're able to learn inside what you all lack as trainers."

 

* * *

 

 

They were the first group to enter, not due to luck but because Niss plunged into the darkness of the tower's maw the moment Fantina asked who wanted to start things off. Barry followed behind their two new friends, a jolt of excitement running through him. This would be his chance to prove himself.

They took the stairs down, leading towards the underground path according to what Fantina told them. With each step he felt the light from outside vanishing and by the time they made it to the base the only thing illuminating their path were a row of iron torches hanging from the stone walls of the first subterranean floor.

The room couldn't have been bigger than the Pokemon Center lobby; entirely empty except for the aforementioned sources of light and a few round, white rocks scattered across the feet of the walls. He narrowed his eyes; there was something familiar about  _Oh dear God those are bones._

"Cheery," whispered Niss.

"The path is that way," Percy took a few steps forward and pointed at the south wall, where a small opening led to a narrow corridor.

They started walking towards it, the sound of their feet echoing, and Barry knew something was wrong the moment he was a couple feet away from that hole in the wall.

Again, for only a moment the warmth came back and he felt like he could truly see. The darkness covering that passage was too thick for the lanterns not to breach it. He also felt a strange sense of claustrophobia which accentuated the closer he walked to Niss.

The warmth disappeared again, but this time he was able to remember how it felt.

"There's something in there," he spoke before realizing it. "I mean… I think there might be something."

Percy and Reiko turned towards him, the first one being a lot more subtle about the fact that he found that statement odd. But Niss didn't even flinch at his words, instead her eyes studied the corridor from up close. She took one of her Pokeballs and released Enma, whose tail lit up the moment he materialized. This light, however, didn't seem to penetrate those shadows either.

"Huh..." she whispered to herself. "Enma, use ember on the corridor, make sure you get all of it."

Enma inhaled deeply, arms raised to the side, and breathed a striking torrent of flames towards the darkness in front of him. A gust of burning air hit all of them and forced them a few step backs, the exception being Reiko who stood still staring directly at the attack, her ponytail waving behind her like a flag.

It took him a few seconds to run out of breath, and by then the attack had managed to turn black the walls, floor and ceiling of the corridor. A pale steam came out of them, and part of it seemed to start taking form. He narrowed his eyes, were those…?

"Two Gastly," Percy's voice made him jump. He set a foot inside and approached the two unconscious ghost Pokemon who now floated aimlessly close to the walls. "I'm guessing they were supposed to lay an ambush for us."

"Nice one kid." Reiko gave him a thumbs up..

"We'll need more light than that Pokemon's flame…" Percy pointed with his head towards Enma, "if we want to have a good idea of what's around us. Prince, come out."

He took an Ultra Ball out of his pocket and opened it, releasing a flash of light that materialized into a tall, chubby yellow Pokemon with thin arms and legs and a long tail which ended in a glowing red sphere. The creature looked at them and formed a goofy smile.

"Ampharos here will light the way," Percy said. "Let's go."

Niss followed along with Enma, elbowing Barry gently as she passed and shooting him a smile. He was the last to enter not because of chivalry or anything of the like but because he was still confused about what had just happened. How'd he know those two Pokemon were in there? And what the heck was that feeling behind his eyes that'd been appearing so often lately?

"Does anyone else feel like it's getting colder?" Reiko asked after what seemed like an entire minute of walking through that passage.

"Yeah, it's called  _we're getting away from the sun and going underground,_ " Niss replied, her voice not lacking sarcasm. "It's a fascinating natural phenomenon, you should look it up sometime."

"You know what I mean, jackass," Reiko tried to hide a laugh and tilted her head towards him. "How do you stand her, string bean?"

"It's… Barry, actually," he stammered, trying his best to avoid looking at her. "And don't let Niss fool you, she's super sweet once you get to know her."

"How dare you spit such disgusting slander in front of me," his friend replied. "I'm honestly offended."

The conversation came to a halt when Percy stopped, extending one his arms to the side so he could get everyone's attention.

"If you're done playing out your favorite cheap sitcom…" he said, "we're here, and you might want to take a look at this."

The room they entered was easily twice as wide and cold as the previous one. The walls seemed to be made of darker rock and this time there weren't any bones around, thank goodness. The walls at his right and left had two person sized holes which led down towards something he couldn't see even with Ampharos lighting the way, and the remaining wall at the other side of the room had another three, even bigger entrances which also led to darkness.

In the middle of the room stood a wooden pedestal with a metal plate bolted on top of it. Some words were written on it, although he couldn't make them out from that distance.

"Anyone else thinks this looks like it's overdoing it a little bit?" Barry mentioned as he walked inside the room, cold clinging to his body. "Like okay, there's no way all this stuff was here before, even as a memorial. The bones, the carvings, the pedestals, the tunnels, they probably added all that later to make the trial creepier, right?"

"Well I'd like to think our ancestors didn't have such a tacky sense of decoration." Inyssa nodded. "So I'd say that yeah, this was all Fantina's work."

Percy took a tentative step forward, eyes set on the wooden pillar. The moment he was close enough a powerful gust of wind erupted from the four openings at their sides, almost knocking them off their feet and obscuring the light coming out of the Ampharos' tail.

"Fuck, what's g…!" Reiko started talking but the wind turned her ponytail around and it hit her in the mouth. "Blegh!"

"Prince, use Flash!" Percy screamed, his voice barely audible over the sound of the wind.

The Ampharos stomped the ground with his tiny feet, a furrowed brow appearing on his adorable face. He let out a high pitched scream and his tail lit up like never before, bathing the entire room in such a strong light that Barry could even feel the intensity of it through his closed eyelids. The dark wind evaporated almost immediately, revealing four floating figures close to the ceiling. Three of them were familiar; the same orbs of darkness that had attacked them earlier; but next to the Gastlys was a Pokemon he'd only seen once in a book. Small, dark green and with flowing, gaseous hair and wearing a strange red necklace. The Misdreavus stared at them with an intense glare.

"There they are!" Inyssa pointed at them. "Enma use…!"

"Stay put," Reiko interrupted her. She walked forward, Pokeball in hand and a wicked smile on her face, and released one of her Pokemon, "these are mine. Stain, Night Slash!"

A flash of green flied by them with a speed that made him dizzy and turned the creature's form into a blur. The only thing he saw was the shine of a sharp blade before it crashed against one of the Gastlys, knocking it out instantly. It landed on its knee, one of its scythes extended to its left and the other one buried in the ground. Its four wings moved furiously, and as it stood up Barry saw the burning, bloodshot red of its eyes set on the three remaining ghosts. Fear and excitement ran through is body as he recognized his favorite Pokemon right in front of him, and he couldn't help but form a huge smile.

"Scyther!" he curled his hands into fists and leaned forward, voice high pitched. "Oh my gosh that's so cool! Where did you get one!?"

Reiko formed a smile full of pride, "He's just a childhood friend, nothing special. Now, Stain! Use..."

"Wait!" Percy put a hand on her shoulder. "Tell him to back up. We should all attack at once to…"

"Don't insult us! I can take care of this myself," Reiko complained, her voice more a growl than anything else. "Stain! Get rid of them!"

The Scyther jumped with his strong legs towards the ghosts, reaching them before Barry even had time to blink. He extended one of his scythes back, brimming with dark energy, and with a forward slash he sent the remaining Gastly flying towards the wall where their bodies disappeared. His wings changed direction and he veered in mid air, preparing a second attack. The Misdreavus' collar started glowing.

He didn't know what he expected; perhaps to see the poor, small ghost Pokemon cut in half or be hit so strongly that its form would entirely dissipate. What he didn't expect was that the moment Scyther touched it his entire body went limp, and the bug Pokemon fell to the ground with a loud thump.

A few heartbeats of silence passed, and he didn't move again. He was completely unconscious.

"W-wha…" Reiko stammered next to him, the cocky attitude she'd displayed a second before gone. "What... the hell?"

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa pressed a hand against her mouth in an attempt not to laugh. Enma on the other hand, had no problem chuckling loudly at what had just happened. Reiko's face turned almost as red as her hair and she was surely about to say some less than flattering things to both of them before Percy interrupted her.

"That Misdreavus must've had Destiny Bond, and it took Stain down with her," he explained, scowling at her. "We should have analyzed our opponents before attacking blindly."

Reiko lowered her head and bit her lip, and Inyssa had to remind herself that making fun of her wouldn't help when they were all trying to work together. She still laughed internally because honestly, seeing that blood thirsty beast fall to something as small as a Misdreavus was one of the funniest things she'd seen all month.

"It's okay, we still have eleven usable Pokemon between all of us," Barry said, working in that charming smile of his that was surely meant to raise the mood around him. "We can still do this."

"Y-yeah…" Reiko whispered and returned the Scyther to his Pokeball. "That was a fluke, nothing else."

"Let's hope it doesn't repeat, then," Percy said as he turned around towards the pedestal. "Now, let's see what's written in here."

They all approached it, and thanks to the light being emitted by the Ampharos' tail they could read the message clear as day. It was written in what seemed to be oily, purple ink and the calligraphy was perfect and beautiful. It read:

_Three paths lie before you:_

_The Path of the Unwary; he who is blind to all except those in need._

_The Path of the Victorious; she who weaves rage with vine-shaped flames._

_The Path of the Guardian, he who patiently waits, forlorn._

_Only one of these holds a light at the end of the tunnel._

_Four other paths lie at your side._

_One of them contains a clue, the rest hold nothing but more shadows._

_Choose wisely._

Inyssa rolled her eyes. Dear god did that woman had an over the top aesthetic for these kinds of things.

"So there's one correct path and the rest are probably dead ends," she summarized to the rest of the group.

"And one of the tunnels at our left or right must hold a clue over which path we should choose," Percy nodded, his eyebrows knit together.

"So we can either choose one of the paths at random and hope we get the right one or we explore those openings and try to find the answer." Barry said.

"Either way we'll be here for a while, huh." Reiko scratched the back of her head.

Silence spread through the room as they all stood there, thinking over their options. She didn't like the idea of leaving the choice of the main path to luck; this was a trial for them to prove themselves after all, but she knew those side corridors must've be packed to the brim with even more ghost Pokemon ready to weaken their team. It wasn't an easy choice.

Which is why she was startled when Percy started laughing. It was a short and quiet laugh, the one she'd expect from a snob like him, but it still caught her off guard. He turned to them and smiled, which did little more than unsettle her.

"We don't need to do any of that," he declared, moving another Pokeball between his fingers. "I'll find the way myself. Pierre, come out!"

From the light he released appeared a… thing, that she had trouble identifying. It looked similar to a Butterfree, but its wings were bigger and more colorful, showing an uniform blue and white square pattern, and its body and eyes were smaller and thinner.

"That's so pretty…" Barry whispered, a small gasp escaping his lips. "What is it?"

"A Vivillion, there's lots of them in my home region."

"You're from… Kalos, then," she deduced, and then turned her head towards Reiko. "And you… judging from your name and that Scyther you must be from… Kanto."

She tried to suppress any sort of anger or disgust at pronouncing the name of that region, but some of it must have slipped through judging by the sour look Reiko gave her.

"Any problem with that?" She perked up her nose, arms crossed.

"No, of course not," Inyssa lied. "Anyway Percy, you were saying?"

There was a small, awkward pause before he cleared his throat and continued speaking.

"Yes, right. There's no need for us to look for any clue," he turned toward his Pokemon. "Pierre, use Supersonic on all three of the main paths. Tells us which one leads to the deepest part of this dungeon."

 _Oh_ , thought Inyssa,  _so that's what he… damn, that's pretty fucking smart_. The bug Pokemon flied towards each one of the openings and released a strange sound wave into every one of them. She deliberated for a few seconds before flying to the one on the right.

"That was really cool." Barry said.

"Thank you," Percy replied dryly. "This will probably save us around twenty minutes, so let's make use of the time we have."

So down they went, for the third time. The path was even narrower and darker than the ones before, but although that would've been a perfect chance for an ambush none came. They simply traveled through what seemed to be about half a mile of a path in complete silence.

Inyssa would've been quite disappointed if that was the end of the trial and they just won without any further challenge. Unfortunately that wasn't the case, and what waited for them in the next room took the air from her lungs.

"What the…" Barry gasped in front of her the moment he came out of the corridor.

"What? What is it?" she managed to pass to the side of his skinny friend and entered the room. "O…oh. Holy shit."

She could barely see the other extreme of… whatever place they'd just walked into. She figured the room must've had the size of a football stadium, and that was hardly the strangest thing about it.

Rows and rows of what appeared to be metal stakes with engravings on them ran from where they were in all directions, covering the majority of the length of that cavern. And in the center…

She felt her throat drying up. That had to be the absolute biggest Pokemon she'd seen in her life. Even when kneeling down its body towered over everything around it, making the stakes look like toothpicks in comparison. It looked like a golem; not the Pokemon Golem but the actual earthly puppet from the myths she read as a child. Its torso was oval shaped and formed most of his body, made of grayish blue rock and with an undulating scar in the middle of it covered by a patch of leather. Its head was quite small in comparison, with pale yellow eyes that also resembled cracks.

Its muscular arms formed a cross in front of it, and while she couldn't quite see its legs while it was in that position she imagined they would be equally gigantic. Inyssa could feel her lower lip trembling, and she unconsciously took a couple steps back.

"W-we're not supposed to fight that, are we?" Reiko asked, her voice breaking slightly. "What even is that fucking thing?"

Whatever it was Inyssa was sure glad it wasn't moving, nor conscious for that matter. The light in its eyes was dull, almost inexistent. Percy took a step forward and grabbed his Pokédex, which had a different design from hers. A small beeping sound filled the room followed by the electronic voice of the device.

_Golurk: The Automaton Pokemon - Ghost/Ground type. It is said they were created by an ancient civilization to protect the people and the land, and they have outlived it by hundreds of years. The energy which fuels them is something scientists haven't been able to study. If the patch covering its chest falls off this energy will run wild, and Golurk will destroy everything in its path._

"Thank Mew the patch is still there," Reiko couldn't help but laugh. "So, are we supposed to…"

The ground shook. The sound of the Pokédex seemed to have reached the Golurk, since the light of its eyes flickered to life and the dust covering its body started falling around it as the behemoth stood up. It stomped one foot on the ground, and Inyssa could feel the vibration hitting her and traveling to her bones. Its head almost touched the barely visible ceiling now, and the crystals in its shoulders began to glow with power.

The only consolation she could find at that moment was the horrified look on Percy's face.

"W-we need to get all of our Pokemon out now!" He took a step back. "This must be the final boss, which means that if we beat it…"

He didn't have time to finish his sentence because something erupted behind them. Enma's body flew up towards the ceiling, the Monferno using the explosions of fire in his hands to propel himself towards the giant in the middle of the room.

"Shit, Enma!" she moved Percy out of the way. "Come back here! You can't fight that thing alone!"

But her words and eventual profanities did nothing to convince her Pokemon of changing his strategy. When he was less than twenty feet from the Golurk he coated himself in flames once more and turned his body into a ball, headed directly to his opponent's face

The Golurk moved its head slightly, as if it'd just been woken up from a nap and barely registered the rolling inferno about to crash into it. It raised its fist and held it at eye level with the Monferno. A white glow covered its entire body.

" _Heavy Slam,"_  Percy's Pokédex came to life once again, startling them, " _a steel type attack that becomes more powerful the more the user weighs in comparison to the target_."

Her veins turned to ice. She'd felt the vibrations that thing caused just by stomping the ground. If its fist hit Enma…

She opened her mouth to scream a warning that would've been useless, but she never got the chance to. The Golurk's fist clashed against her Pokemon with such force that his flames were extinguished before they even made contact, and Enma went flying backwards like a bullet, landing only a few steps from Inyssa.

He wasn't moving.

"O-oh my god…" Barry whispered behind her. "One… one hit?"

"That Monferno should've resisted that attack," Percy's voice shook with fear. "So if any of our Pokemon gets hit by that thing…"

Inyssa barely listened to him, eyes glued to Enma. Her best Pokemon, defeated in less than an instant.

In the furthest part of her mind, she heard a faint laugh that reminded her of Fantina.


	20. What You Lack - Part 2

Reiko stood there, simply watching the unconscious body of the Monferno and feeling heat build up inside her. She looked up to the fucking monster currently standing high enough for its head to almost touch the ceiling, and her fingers curled into a fist.

"Is Fantina just screwing with us!?" she couldn't help but ask, a hint of desperation in her voice. "What the hell is she thinking!?"

Percy gulped, his legs trembling, "I-it knocked him out in one hit!"

The Golurk set its eyes on them and stomped the ground with one of its feet, starting to walk forward. She could feel the vibrations travel from the ground up to her body, and her breathing suddenly became heavy.

"We have to attack it!" she exclaimed, taking two Pokeballs out of her belt. "Let's hit it with everything we've got before it comes over here!"

"Wait!" Percy's hand closed around her wrist, and she turned around to see him staring at her, lower lip quivering. "W-we need an actual plan. If we all attack and it uses something that hits all of us…"

"What's the alternative then!?" She freed her arm with so much force she almost sent him to the ground. "I'm not gonna stand here waiting for you to think while that thing gets closer!"

"Guys, guys!" The tall blonde kid interjected, putting a hand between them with an unsure smile on his face. "You both clearly need to chill a bit. Listen, we can do this, we just need to all be on the same page."

She scowled at him, at his baby face and bright eyes which somehow managed to ease some of the anger that'd been building up inside her, and she took one deep breath.

"Look at it." Barry directed their attention to the giant Pokemon, who was still taking slow, powerful steps towards them. "It's super slow! All we gotta do is use our fast Pokemon that can dodge while they attack it. We can, like…" he made a hand gesture, trying to think of the words.

"Whittle it down."

She heard Inyssa's voice behind her, which surprised her because she hadn't heard her talk in almost a minute. The girl walked forward, stomping the ground in a similar way to the Golurk, and with a movement of her hand returned her fainted Monferno to his Pokeball. She then proceeded to take another one out of her belt, her lips stretched into a thin line across her face.

"We are going to have a talk once we're done with this," she whispered to Monferno's Pokeball with an amount of venom that was surprising coming from such a young girl, and then put it back in her belt. "Listen, Barry's right. We'll use hit and run tactics," she looked first at Percy, and then at her. "You two done arguing? Fancy boy, I'm gonna need you to work with me here so stop shaking, and you redhead I'd appreciate it if you didn't fly off the handle every time something bad happens."

The anger came back, and it came back hard, hitting her body like a hammer and erasing any effect that Barry's good will could've had in her. She barely registered herself walking to the girl and grabbing her by the scarf with an iron grip.

"Listen here you half pint piece of shit…" she spat the words, feeling a dull throb in her temples, "keep talking like that and I'll deck you so hard I'll send your teeth flying to the other side of this room!"

Inyssa let out a dry chuckle, "Go ahead, I've fought people bigger than me before. Besides, do you wanna waste the time we have left? I'm sure Percy would love that after you already compromised us once."

Reiko stared daggers at the little shit, the fury inside of her now making her blood run so fast she was starting to get a headache. She was right, of course she was fucking right and that was the absolute worst part of it. They'd already lost one of their best Pokemon because of her and now all she had to offer for the team was a tantrum.

She swallowed all the things she wanted to say to Inyssa and let go of her scarf, her entire face red. At her right Barry let out a sigh of relief, and stared his friend down with eyebrows knit together. She avoided his gaze.

"We'll talk after we do this." Reiko whispered, barely getting a hold of herself. "Percy, we need a plan," she turned to him, putting a hand over his trembling shoulder. "Percy! Stay with me man, I need you right now."

The boy took a sudden breath, apparently coming back to reality, and looked at her with eyes widened. She felt a hint of guilt for not noticing his panic earlier, but decided to bite it and swallow it down for the moment. The time for consoling him would come later.

"R-right…" he nodded,"we need to attack from afar, like Inyssa said. Preferably using type advantage, and we shouldn't have more than..." he paused for a second to take a breath and swallow, "we should only have one Pokemon out right now, we don't know if it has any area of effect attacks. If we manage to avoid those and keep hitting it we should be able to win considering his speed and reliance on physical power."

"Sounds good!" Barry yelled enthusiastically. "Kitsune, come out and use Confusion!"

Inyssa shrugged, opening the Pokeball in her hand. "That's what I was planning on anyway. Bret, Magical Leaf!"

Two Pokemon materialized in front of them. The first was a robust, yellow fox standing on his two legs and holding a metal spoon on one of his hands, a giant mustache adorning part of his face. The other was a short plant creature with a head like a flower bud and two roses instead of hands, one blue and one red. She recognized them from the time she and Percy had spent… running into them while they trained. She'd even got to see them evolve.

The Kadabra punched the air with the hand that held the spoon, and aimed it at the Golurk while closing one of his eyes. A pink-ish glow covered his hand, and Reiko felt the air become heavy. The giant Pokemon raised its leg once more, but this time it stopped on its tracks, that same glow covering its entire body. A piercing sound, not quite a scream but too high pitched to be a growl, came out of its inexistent mouth as it grabbed its head with both hands, falling to one knee and raising a cloud of dust around it. Without missing a beat the Roselia threw both hands forward and released a small torrent of razor sharp petals aimed directly at the thing's chest. The impact wasn't strong enough to make itbudge but It managed to cover most of its body in tiny scratches.

Reiko stood still as she watched them, hand strongly closed around one of her Pokeballs and biting her lip. She could still feel that all encompassing heat pulsing inside her chest and threatening to take over, but she managed to keep it at bay if only for a while longer. Still, she couldn't help but feel a bit frustrated. She'd been watching that Inyssa girl for a few days now, and after meeting her she'd thought she found someone as hot headed as her. But here she was, jumping into action immediately and not letting her emotions get the better of her. A child was a better trainer than her, and the thought alone almost made Reiko heave.

"Good, we're slowing it down." Percy said, showing the smallest hint of a smile. "I'll have Pierre support your Pokemon through the air with distraction and status moves while Prince acts as a backup. Reiko, I'm gonna need you to…"

The Golurk screamed again, interrupting Percy's words. With impressive strength it managed to free itself from the psychic Pokemon's hold and slowly got on its feet again, eyes shining maliciously. The giant took both its hands and put them in front of its chest one on top of the other, as if it were holding an invisible ball. White light, much like the one from its previous attack, covered its arms as the ground started shaking.

"Is it trying to use the same attack?" Inyssa whispered. "It's too far away, there's no way it'd be able to hit…"

Percy's Pokedex came to life with another beep, almost making Reiko jump out of her skin. The electronic voice spoke again:

" _Hyper Beam – An extremely devastating attack that causes the Pokemon to become exhausted after using it, forcing them to remain immobile for a short time afterwards."_

Reiko's heart was on her throat as she heard those words, and her eyes slowly moved to the miniature white sun now resting between that thing's hands.

"Wait, no!" Percy's eyes shot wide open. "Pierre, use Protect! Now, now!"

Vivillion flew as fast as his wings allowed him to towards the Kadabra and Roselia, putting both hands forward and deploying a green-ish shield of light around them, moments before the Golurk released the energy on its hands.

The beam of light almost blinded her. It traveled at an insane speed towards them and the moment it clashed against the barrier the entire ground shook, sending Percy backwards to the ground and almost doing the same to the rest of them. But the shield wasn't strong enough and barely managed to stop the attack for two seconds before it was shattered. The pillar of energy fell on top of Pierre, swallowing him whole and barely catching half of the other two Pokemon's bodies.

By the time the dust settled all she could see was the small bug's body laying flat on the ground, his beautiful wings smoking from the energy that'd hit him. Next to him the Kadabra and Roselia stood on one knee, the only reason they weren't unconscious being that the barrier and Pierre's body had taken most of the impact head on.

She slowly turned around towards Percy, and the look of horror in his face broke the dam inside of her. A foggy, hot haze of anger covered her limbs and obscured her vision, and she felt her heart throbbing inside her chest like a drum. Her body moved on its own as she threw the Pokeball in her hand to the ground, opening it and releasing a tall, blue creature with a yellow beak. The Golduck landed on its two feet, its red eyes glistening with power.

"Nakuru, Aqua Jet!" the words came out of her almost like a growl. "Beat that thing's ass! Now!"

Golduck moved like lightning, dashing between the metal stakes and turning into a blur. Before the giant had any time to react he turned the moisture in the air around him into a cloak of water that covered his entire body, and with a strong jump managed to tackle it right in the chest with a hit strong enough to almost make him fall on his back. She detected a hint of pride amongst the hot fury inside of her.

"Reiko!" Percy stammered as he made his way towards her, looking a few seconds away from an anxiety attack. "I told you, we need to be careful!"

"We already did, and we got fucked because of it!" she protested.

"Great, here we go again," she heard Inyssa whisper behind her, just high enough for her voice to reach her.

"If that thing has long range attacks then we can't stay on the defensive! Why is it so hard to understand!?" she yelled at them while tapping the ground with her feet. "Besides, it has to recharge from that Hyper Beam, this is the perfect chance. Nakuru, use Water Pulse!"

The Golduck gave them an energetic thumbs up. Without missing a beat he took as much air in as possible, and shot what seemed to be a geyser of water shaped like a spiral from his mouth, traveling towards the Golurk's chest. Reiko couldn't help but smile; there was no way that wouldn't do an insane amount of damage. Only a couple more attacks like that and…

The attack stopped before reaching it, clashing against something she could barely make out. In front of the golem was now a purple creature with a spiky, barely formed body, both disembodied arms floating at its side. Its blood-red opening that she figured was a mouth was twisted into a painful expression as the ghost Pokemon endured the torrent of water.

The Haunter fell to the ground, unconscious. Reiko simply stood there, not quite grasping what had just happened. At least until a dozen other gaseous creatures started rising from the ground upwards, surrounding Nakaru and staring him down with their eyes full of malice.

The Golurk wasn't their only opponent, and her best Pokemon was now behind enemy lines.

 

* * *

 

 

Barry felt a rush of panic, and he spoke before he had time to think.

"Kitsune, help him out!" he ordered, tone high pitched. "Use Confusion on those ghosts!"

The Kadabra did as he was told, and with another flourish of his spoon he sent a psychic shock towards what seemed to be another Haunter, who screamed and moved his hands in all directions before falling immobile, just like the previous one.

In the meantime Nakuru did his best to dodge all the attacks coming towards him, barely having enough time to breathe and get in a couple hits here and there. But the horde of Gastly, Misdreavus and Haunter were proving too much to handle for only one Pokemon. His chest rose up and down along with his heavy breathing and it was clear his body was at its limit.

"We have to help him!" Barry tried to get everyone's attention, doing his best to suppress the fear in his voice. "Niss, between Paulette and Steven we could get him out of there."

Niss turned towards him and shot him a look of disbelief, furrowed brow. At the corner of his eye he could see another dozen ghost Pokemon rising from the ground in a straight line in front of them.

"You can't be serious," she replied, the left side of her lips forming a half smile, "you want us to waste two Pokemon to save one of hers? She was the dumbass who got us into this problem to begin with!"

"We can't leave him there!" he yelled, throwing both arms into the air. "We're a team, we have to help each other if we want to…"

"She's right," Reiko interrupted them, and the pain and anger in her voice sent a shiver down his spine. "This is all my fault. If I hadn't..." she curled her fingers into a fist, so strongly that her hand became pale, and her firm shoulders started to shake, "Fuck, fuck, fuck! I should've listened to you! Now we're all gonna lose and…"

One of her trembling hands went to her face, where she tried not to subtly to wipe away the wetness coming out of her eyes. Niss simply took another step forward, not noticing this.

"See?" she asked, eyes set on their opponent. "There was never any point in trusting anyone else. We're gonna defeat this thing ourselves."

Barry couldn't believe his ears. He moved his glance from his friend, completely unaffected by what happened around her, to the shaking Reiko and finally to Percy, whose eyes went from his Pokedex to the situation in front of him as he muttered things to himself, completely out of it.

Barry grit his teeth. He might've not been the strongest trainer amongst them, nor a good strategist, but he knew there was no way they could ever win like this. All the anger and bitterness he'd been accumulating for the past weeks rose from his chest, extending through his entire body. And before he could even process his words he found himself yelling.

"What the hell is your problem!?"

He caught them all off guard, judging by the way they turned towards him. Inyssa was the most affected; she looked at him with wild disbelief, as if she'd just seen a ghost.

"Why are you treating them like this!?" the words came out of him like a flowing waterfall, one he couldn't quite control. "They're our teammates! What do you think is the point of the entire trial!?"

"I…" she stammered to get a response out, eyes opened wide, but he interrupted her.

"If you think we can win alone then you're delusional," his tone was heavy, and his words hit her like a hammer. "Just look at that thing! Reiko and Percy's Pokemon are much stronger than ours and they're our only chance to win this! Or do you have another fully evolved water Pokemon that could help us right now?"

Inyssa didn't say anything back, too shocked by his tone to reply. He could see her lower lip quivering.

"We've all got problems and our own things going on…" he continued, and before he knew it that strange heat came back, appearing behind his eyes, "that doesn't mean we can't work together and win this. Fantina was right, there are some things we all lack, but that's why we came here, to learn and improve!" He took one of his Pokeballs out of his belt, brandishing it and throwing it into the air. "If you want to pretend you can do this alone that's fine, but I'm here to win, and for that we need them! Pedri, help that Golduck!"

The Prinplup materialized ready, and as soon as his feet touched the ground he began sprinting towards the conglomeration of Pokemon in the middle of the room. He ran with both his fins at his side, imbuing them with a silver energy that did wonders to dispel all the ghosts which tried to stop him on the way.

The Golurk was now a few feet from Nakuru, who was down on one knee and barely able to move. With a premeditated slowness it raised its gigantic fist and coated it with the same white light they'd seen before. It fell on top of him with the strength of an avalanche, and just before the impact Pedri managed to jump between them, intercepting the attack with his own body. When the dust dispersed he could see his Pokemon with both feet planted firmly on the ground, his fins barely holding the weight of the Golurk's fist.

"H-he wasn't knocked out…" Percy whispered, disbelief clear in his tone.

"Barry…" Reiko stared at him, with an expression he couldn't quite make out. "You don't have to do this…"

"I'm not going to repeat myself. We're all getting through this," he turned towards his friend, who was still speechless. "Niss, are you gonna help me out here or not?"

She also stared at him, and the weight of her gaze was almost too heavy to handle. To say he was improvising would've been putting it lightly. Now that that explosive rage had subsided he was barely managing to hold the act of decisiveness that had seemed so easy less than a minute ago.

Her expression changed several times in a few seconds, going from surprise to rage to sadness and a few other things he couldn't possibly pinpoint. In the end she lowered her head, covering her eyes in shadows. He gulped, trying desperately to hide the shiver that began to cover his body. He was scared; scared of the reaction she would have to his words, and he wasn't sure saying all that had been a good idea after all.

"Hope you're right about this," she finally spoke, raising her head again and showing him a flat expression. "Redhead, you owe me one."

She smiled. A weak, perhaps too feeble smile, but it managed to untie the knot inside his chest. That smile was for him and him alone, and nothing in the world could've filled him with more strength.

"Alright!" he took another Pokeball out, and Niss did the same. "Paulette, get that Golduck back here! Pedri, hold him back with Bubble Beam!"

"Steven, follow Paulette! Bret, keep up the attack!" She threw the Pokeball into the air as she gave them orders. The small grey bird appeared along Barry's evolved form of him, and both started flying to the center of the room. "Reiko, we need cover from those ghost Pokemon! It's the least you can do since we're saving your ass!"

"R-right," Reiko nodded, taking her final Pokeball out. "Gamatetsu, help them out with Vine Whip!"

A massive and extremely heavy looking green Pokemon appeared in front of them, landing on her four feet. She had the face of a toad, and a colorful giant flower hung from her back. Two thick vines were expelled from the Venusaur's sides, traveling almost thirty feet forward and smacking every ghost Pokemon that Niss' Starly and Barry's Staravia encountered on their way.

In the middle of the room the Prinplup managed to send his opponent's fist backwards with all his strength, although that barely gave him enough time to dodge the next punch. He inhaled deeply and shot a burst of bubbly water at the Golurk, and while it didn't have as much of an effect as Reiko's Pokemon it still managed to make it flinch for a second, just enough for Bret's razor sharp petals to reach its body and send it a few feet back.

In the middle of the confusion both flying Pokemon swooped in and grabbed the Golduck by his arms with their talons, flapping furiously to lift him up and get him back to the back lines. Paulette did most of the lifting; her long, delicate wings cutting through the air and her expression that of decisiveness. Steven on the other hand was struggling to sustain Nakuru's weight, and he constantly looked back at the Haunters and Gastlys that chased them with an always present look of terror on his face.

Way back the Golurk managed to free itself from its shock and stomped the floor once again. With a deep growl it put its hands in that strange position again, and started to gather white energy into it. Barry felt everyone panic around him.

"That's going straight for Nakuru and the others!" Reiko yelled.

"W-we need to cancel that Hyper Beam!" Percy followed. "Everyone attack it at once!"

Both him and Niss gave the orders to their Pokemon, and soon a whirlwind of water and grass attacks flied through the width of the cavern, filling almost a quarter of it and hitting the Golurk in the middle of the chest. The giant flinched from the impact, and for a second Barry had the naïve hope that they'd managed to stun him.

That hope was shattered when it sent both hands forward and fired the attack regardless. The pillar of light fell on top of Golduck and both their flying Pokemon with the speed of a bullet. But just before it made impact Paulette let go of Nakuru's arm. Steven went down, incapable of holding Nakuru's weight, and fell in front of the group of trainers as the Hyper Beam swallowed Paulette whole. Her body fell limp to the ground, raising a small cloud of dust around her.

"I'll have to thank her later," Inyssa smiled nervously. "Alright, and that thing's gotta recharge energy again. We need to hit it now!"

Barry nodded, swallowing down the pride he felt for Paulette at the moment, and returned her back to her Pokeball.

Every one of their Pokemon with the exception of Percy's Ampharos attacked the Golurk. Bret and Gamatetsu fired a torrent of leaves and petals that stuck to its body and barely managed to penetrate its rock skin. Nakuru and Pedri (who was still in the thick of the fight, dodging attacks from all fronts) doused it with copious amounts of water. Kitsune gave the thing another ugly headache and Steven flew around the battlefield, sending gusts of winds towards the Pokemon below.

And while Barry observed this, an odd feeling started to bug him from the edges of his mind. The more he looked at the battlefield in front of him the more he felt like there was something strange going on. More and more ghost Pokemon started raising from the ground, as if there were no end to them. But they did so in very specific patterns; in a straight line just below where Steven flew, wherever their attacks traveled through, in any place where Pedri set his feet as he desperately tried to dodge a barrage of hits…

A light bulb lit up in his head, and he felt his mouth open wide as he realized it. There was a pattern to it; their emerging had nothing to do with bad luck or randomness.

"The stakes…" he whispered to himself, and had to repeat it so everyone could hear him. "It's those metal stakes all over the place! The ghost Pokemon are hidden there and they come out whenever something comes close to it!"

Everyone turned around him, confused for a moment but realization dawning on them soon after.

The entire cave was a ghost minefield.

 

* * *

 

 

Percy was caught between the metaphorical rock of  _How could this brat figure the puzzle out before me?_  and the similarly metaphorical hard place of  _That's bad. That's really, really bad._

His gaze moved all through the battlefield, as the only thing he could currently do to push back the panic was analyzing the situation. Around fifteen, maybe twenty ghost Pokemon were heading their way right now. Barry's Prinplup was currently struggling against six of them. Another dozen were slowly ascending from the ground in the places closest to where Inyssa's Starly flew.

"Of course it wasn't gonna be that easy," Inyssa said, her posture as firm and free of fear as ever. How the hell did she do that? "Steven! Fly in circles around where you already are and try not to wake up any more of them!"

Percy bit his lip hard as his mind went through every single possibility and ramification of that. It would not work, at best the Starly would be able to distract a few of them before they overwhelmed him with their sheer number advantage. And then they would lose their only flying Pokemon on the field.

He crossed his arms, unconsciously scratching the outside of them as he felt his mind slowly freeze with their lack of options.

The ghost Pokemon hidden in those metal stake relics weren't very powerful, but they were a lot of them and probably counted with an array of attacks that would slow them down or inflict status effects. And trying to outrun them was counterproductive, since the more they moved around in the cavern the more of them they'd bring out. But at the same time the speed and dodging ability of their Pokemon was the only reason the Golurk hadn't managed to beat them so far.

Fantina really had thought everything through. Even with the advantage of time they managed to get a hold on the situation still seemed hopeless. They could either fight the Golurk and get drowned in a horde of weaker ghost Pokemon or stay in place and negate their numbers advantage, becoming easy targets for the giant to pick on.

The scratching became harsher and he suddenly felt out of air. Was it all the dust rising from the floor due to their fighting? No, they were at a reasonable distance and the cavern itself had lots of space. He closed his eyes, let the world around him disappear, let the sounds of battle fade into nothing more than white noise. Static.

The static became louder and louder, until he could feel it in his own body. Thousands and thousands of tiny, gnashing teeth clawing from the inside of his skin outwards. Trying to escape, trying to eat him from the inside and they were so sharp and his scratching wasn't enough anymore to distract his mind from it and…

"Percy!"

Reiko's voice brought him back to reality. Perhaps too strongly, in a way that felt like his entire body had been hit with a dump truck, but it worked well enough to allow him to see what was in front of him. Three of the Haunters had summoned a spiraling ball of darkness, twice as tall as them, that was headed directly towards Prince who was looking back at his trainer, waiting for an order.

He opened his mouth to tell him to dodge, but no sound came out. His body wouldn't respond, his mind was still partly a haze of static and he felt his heart beating hard inside his chest. The Shadow Ball was almost on top of Prince, pulsing with an intensity that would surely put him out of the fight.

Something massive and green jumped in between them. The Venusaur moved with a speed she really shouldn't have had considering her size, and before Percy could speak she took the full blunt of the attack. The impact pushed her a short distance back and made her four feet tremble, but wasn't enough to knock her out. By Reiko's request she whipped the air with her vines, defeating the three Haunters in an instant.

"Percy!" Reiko put a hand over his shoulder, which startled him because he didn't even notice her walking his direction. "Hey, what's going on? Are you okay?"

He tried to reply, but his throat was too dry and all he managed was a disgruntled sound that could've passed for a cough. Before he had a chance to speak again he heard Inyssa's voice a few feet from them.

"Can we maybe leave that for later?" she asked, her voice barely audible over the sounds of the fight. "We need help with these ghosts and that giant is starting to get back on its feet!"

"Just hold on!" Reiko shouted back, her hand still strongly grabbing his shoulder. "Hold them off for a second, please!"

Inyssa shot them a look that wasn't very pleasant, but didn't protest more than that. Reiko turned her head to him once more, and her eyes met his.

"Hey, I know things look bad. I might be part of the reason why they're so bad in the first place," she barely managed to smile. "But remember what the kid said; we can do this, we just need to think of something together." Her hand squished his shoulder with even more force. "That means we need you too. You're smart as shit, and we could use one of your plans right now."

"I-I…" he stammered, finally getting some words out even if his tone was all over the place, "I don't know… what to do. This is too much…"

"Nothing is too much," she cut him off, eyes gleaming. "Come on, do you really think Fantina would come up with a test that can't be beaten? There has to be a way, and I need you to help us find it," she curled her fingers around his. "I know you can do it. You're a Gontaut, aren't you? Nothing in this world can hold you back."

The panic taking hold of his body slowly melted away with every word she spoke, and the touch of her hand felt like the most real thing in the world, working as an anchor. He took a couple deep breaths, and managed to nod twice. He couldn't let her down now; not after everything she'd done for him.

"W-well…" he raised his sight to the battlefield in front of him. "If we could get rid of all the weaker Pokemon at once we'd have a chance to attack Golurk before more appeared. But… the only one of our Pokemon with an area of effect attack is Prince, and with all the power he's been using to keep this room lit he should only have enough strength for one big attack."

"That could work." Reiko nodded, trying to sound enthusiastic.

"We need something better than that." He shook his head. "I'm not even sure the attack would knock them all out. The air inside here is dry and wouldn't work well as a conductor and none of them are weak to electricity so…" he paused, his body freezing, "So…"

An idea hit him. A stupid, extremely risky idea that could easily mean the assured failure of the trial, but it was the only one he deemed likely enough to get them out of the metaphorical frying pan they were all in.

He walked towards Inyssa with decided step and tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention. When their eyes met he opened his mouth and said something that he was sure would make him sound like a complete idiot.

"I have a plan. I need your Starly to fly around the cavern and wake up every single one of those ghost Pokemon."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa turned around to make sure he really was speaking to her. Then she considered the possibility that the commotion around her made it so she didn't hear him right. But by the time she realized those two things were unlikely all she could do was let out a laugh which relieved only a fraction of the knot formed in her stomach.

"And here I thought that stick up your ass didn't allow you to make jokes," she smiled.

"I'm serious."

Her smile froze, dying faster than the time it took her to blink.

"I'm... sorry?" she moved her gaze from him to the now almost thirty ghosts fighting against their teams. "You want me to… bring more of them out."

"I have a plan," he assured her. "I think I might be able to get rid of all of them at once. You have to trust me."

She turned to Barry with a look of  _Is this guy serious?._  Her friend simply stared at both of them and shrugged while making a small nod. He was okay with it. He actually… he actually trusted Percy.

"You said that you think you can do that?" she rolled her eyes at Barry and turned to Percy once again. "So it's not a guarantee."

"Not at all," he admitted, and she noticed his shoulders starting to tremble. "But it's the best idea I have, and we need to do something before we're overpowered."

They stood still, looking at each other for what felt like a lot longer than five seconds. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. After all the trouble him and Reiko had put them through, after having to help them despite her better judgment…

_You wouldn't have made it so far without them._

…the recklessness of Reiko, the cowardice of Percy, ever since they'd entered the Lost Tower she felt bound by them, saw them as nothing more than chains dragging her down when she should've been shining all on her own.

_They are more powerful and experienced than you are._

And then they had to go and make up and suddenly Reiko was all better and Percy came to her with that stupid smile and asked her to trust him without giving her any reason to do so…

_You can't do this alone._

And especially after Barry's words… after he'd left her completely speechless and feeling like shit. What the hell did they know anyway?

_He was right, you need them._

She took a hand to her face and tried to drown the voice bouncing inside her head, to no avail. She knew, of course she knew, she'd have to be a terrible trainer not to. They were up against a corner; at any moment they would be overwhelmed and their Pokemon would all fall. She'd known that for a couple minutes already, and yet she tried to convince herself of the contrary.

She bit her lip and looked around; both Bret and Kitsune were on one knee, huffing as they tried to keep them at bay, and a few feet at her left Reiko's Venusaur fell to the combined attack of five ghost Pokemon. They had no time left.

A desperate plan was their only choice. Maybe just this time… maybe she could trust him. Maybe things wouldn't end so catastrophically as every other time she'd tried to give such an important choice to someone else.

_Maybe just this time._

"Just for the record, you also owe me one," those were her only words before she turned around to the battlefield and yelled. "Steven! Fly all over the room and draw out as many of them as you can!"

The Starly almost flew into a wall after hearing those words, and while his tiny face showed an expression of extreme confusion he had no choice but do what his trainer ordered. He flew lower to the ground in an outwards spiral pattern from the center of the room, and soon enough she saw dozens of dark shapes rising from below him. Next to Inyssa, Percy took a deep breath, and nodded to himself.

"Alright…" he whispered, voice shaking, "alright! Barry, tell your Prinplup to fall back to where we are! And Prince!" He locked eyes with his Ampharos, who gave him a weak smile and a thumbs up. "Get ready to attack!"

Unfortunately for them things didn't go exactly as planned, as the Golurk finally regained its energy by the time they got the plan going. The giant stood to its full height, the spirals on its shoulders and the scar on its chest burning with a pale blue light that was even stronger than the Ampharos' tail. Its eyes went straight to the small Pokemon flying all over the room, and ignoring everything else it put both hands in the same position it had used twice already. It readied the Hyper Beam, and took aim.

"Pedri!" Barry yelled before she had a chance to react. "Hit it in the legs!"

The Prinplup didn't need to be told twice. Now completely surrounded by ghosts and without any chance to fall back he ran towards the Golurk with all the strength left in him, and coating his fins in silver energy he hit it just below the knee. The force was enough to make it lose balance, and as it released that destructive pillar of light for the third time its aim was slightly off. The attack missed Steven by a couple inches and trailed off to the roof where it dissipated.

Pedri formed one last, prideful smile and fell to the ground, the last of his energy leaving him.

Steven finished his last circle around the room at that moment, and just as Barry returned Pedri back to his Pokeball the Starly landed on Inyssa's shoulder, his eyes opened wide with fear and his tiny chest moving violently along with his breathing.

Inyssa would've reassured him if she weren't using all her willpower not to freak out at the image in front of her. Countless shadows rose from the entirety of the cavern, and she felt the weight of every single one of those pair of eyes on her. It was like someone shoved an icicle right in her spine.

Sixty? Eighty? No, at the very least more than a hundred ghost Pokemon stared at them, ready to attack.

"Percy, the plan!" she yelled, struggling not to take a step back. "Now!"

He nodded, and turned towards Reiko. "Tell Nakuru to use Soak on the entire room!"

Reiko nodded and gave the order. Golduck stood up, still badly damaged from the previous fight, and with all his might he inhaled deeply and expulsed a gigantic torrent of water upwards. Since it was aimed at the roof instead of the enemies in front of them the water dispersed and covered the whole width of the cavern, falling on top of them and the Golurk like a thick sheet of rain. This, however, did nothing more than slightly annoy the ghost Pokemon.

Inyssa pinched her brow, staring at them in confusion. What the hell was Percy thinking? All Soak did was turn everyone in front of them more vulnerable to…

Realization dawned on her, and she couldn't help but laugh. Electricity. It would make them more vulnerable to electricity.

"Nakuru, fall back!" Percy ordered, and he took his last Pokeball from his pocket. "Priscilla, come out!"

From the light emerged a tall, furry red and yellow creature with the face of a fox and what seemed to be a burning stick on her left hand. The edges of its fur steamed with heat, and her calm expression was contrasted by the fire behind her eyes.

"Priscilla, I need you to form a protective barrier around us as soon as Prince attacks," Percy ordered, and then turned to his other Pokemon. "Prince… you know what to do."

Without a second thought the Ampharos put out the light on his tail and jumped high in the air, landing about ten feet from them, in front of the colossal army of ghost Pokemon. Every one of them flew towards Prince with a sinister gleam in their eyes, and Inyssa saw the Golurk starting to recover its composure once again.

"Give it everything you've got!" Percy punched the air, and for the first time fear seemed completely absent from his expression. "Discharge!"

The strange fox Pokemon pointed her makeshift wand forward and a thick green barrier surrounded all of them. Immediately after Ampharos raised both arms into the air, and with a scream that cut the air in two he released all the energy left in his body. It felt like a bomb was let loose; tendrils of electricity exploded from his tiny form and traveled outwards into the floor, walls and ceiling filling the entire cavern and blinding her just from the light alone. She heard dozens of unified, cold screams sing a song of agony as all the ghosts were obliterated by the attack and fell to the ground, unconscious.

Prince followed, although the light of his Pokeball reached him and returned him to it before he could hit the floor. Percy held it in his hands, his arm shaking and a drop of sweat running down his forehead.

Inyssa remembered then that she had to breathe. She blinked too, for good measure, and tried not to show in her expression just how fucking amazing she thought that had been.

Only one Pokemon stood in front of them now. The Golurk had fallen to one knee, and steam rose from its entire body as it struggled to get to its feet. Inyssa felt a wild throb of her heart as she saw that; they were so close now. Victory was within their reach.

"That was so fucking awesome!" Reiko yelled next to her, a huge and crooked grin on her face. "Come on, one more attack! Let's finish it off with a combo!"

"A… combo?" Barry tilted his head to the side, knitting his eyebrows together. "What's that?"

Percy and Reiko exchanged a look which said much more than she could've hoped to interpret, and they smiled at them.

"We're gonna need your Kadabra for this," Percy explained. "The least we can do is share this little secret with you after how much you helped us."

"What are you…?" Inyssa started to question it right until she saw the Golurk fully get on its feet. "Well, whatever it is let's do it fast! This is our chance!"

Reiko walked to Barry and whispered something in his ear, then pointed towards his Kadabra. The boy narrowed his eyes as he listened, and a few seconds after he formed a huge smile on his face.

"That sounds amazing," he whispered, and turned to her "Niss this is gonna be great! Come on!"

"I have no idea what you're on about!" she complained, throwing her hands into the air. "Just hurry the fuck up!"

"Let's hit it with everything! Now!" Reiko yelled as she pointed towards their opponent. "Nakuru, Water Pulse!"

"Priscilla, Mystical Fire!"

"Bret, Magical Leaf! Steven, Whirlwind!"

All four Pokemon attacked in unison. The Golduck took one last, deep breath and spit up another stream of water. The strange fox Pokemon drew two circles of fire in front of her and then released a torrent of flames in the middle, so powerful that Inyssa could fel the overwhelming heat from where she was. Roselia raised both hands and a hurricane of razor sharp petals traveled forward, and finally the Starly flapped his wings with such force that he created a powerful gust of wind.

"My turn!" Barry spoke, pointing to the sky with one finger, his eyes shining like she'd never seen them before. "Kitsune, combine them together!"

Inyssa stared in disbelief as the Kadabra pointed with his spoon at the four attacks and coated them with a bright purple light. The fire, water, wind and petals twisted their trajectories and swirled together into a spiral of energy which grew in size to almost double of what the Golurk's Hyper Beam had been.

"And of course we can't just have this new move and not give it a name!" Barry exclaimed. "Elemental Vortex, go!"

Inyssa barely had time to feel personally offended by that horrible name before the attack connected and the light blinded her. The impact shook the ground so violently that it swept her off her feet and made her fall on her butt, which wasn't particularly pleasant but at least she was too distracted by the booming sound of the entire cavern shaking and the Golurk's scream to pay any mind to it.

Twenty seconds went by before she was able to get on her feet without the world around her moving like she was inside of a blender. Another fifteen later the enormous cloud of dust started to disperse, showing the aftermath of that ridiculous attack.

"D-did we…?" Percy whispered to himself, eyes glued to the shape in the middle of the room.

The Golurk's gigantic body laid face down on the floor, its eyes dull and its limbs immobile. She didn't need to be close to it to know it was unconscious.

They all stood in silence for what felt like an eternity, and before any of them could say anything Reiko threw both arms in the air and let out a scream that traveled through the ground and into her bones, full of joy and exhaustion and just a little bit of fury.

"We did it!" she let out a long, fruity laugh. "That's what you get, you flat faced giant piece of shit!" She then turned around towards Barry and Percy. "C'mere you two! That was amazing!"

And before the boys had any chance to protest she put both her arms around their shoulders and raised them into a bear hug that she imagined could've easily crushed their bones. Reiko gave a couple more jumps of joy while Percy and Barry tried their best not to suffocate, and Inyssa couldn't help but laugh with her.

"Don't think I forgot about you!" She put both of them back on the ground and started walking towards Inyssa, whose smile died fast. "Come here! You prideful little shit, you did great!"

"That's… really not necessary." Inyssa took a few desperate steps back, laughing nervously. "Really, just…"

Both of them stopped as they heard the sound of clapping coming from behind them. They turned around to the source and found Fantina, standing in front of the cavern's entrance with a thin smile pasted on her face.

Inyssa's mind yelled  _Oh thank God_  and  _Oh God dammit_  at the same time, assaulted with a contradictory set of emotions. Which unfortunately prevented her from insulting the Gym Leader before she spoke.

"That was magnificent," she said as she walked toward them, one hand raised in front of her and the other one on her hip. "Truly a show of skill and might worth spectating. Consider me impressed."

Her words seemed to bring some levity to the atmosphere around them, and Inyssa felt like the dust and cold lifted from where she stood and cleared her mind. Reiko still had that ridiculous smile on her face, and Percy and Barry stared at the woman with reverence, a small blush painted on their cheeks.

"So, did we pass?" Inyssa decided to cut to the chase. "Are we worthy enough to kick your ass now?"

Reiko had to contain a laugh, and shot her a look of approval.

"Quaint as always, Inyssa," Fantina raised an eyebrow, arms crossed. "Yes, you all passed the trial." She took a breath and indulged herself in a dramatic pause before continuing. "And I'm glad to see that you took my advice to heart. It would be irresponsible of me to say that you've fully managed to achieve change or found what you lacked as trainers, but at the very least you all made some amount of progress today, and that's what matters."

"Thank you so much for the opportunity you gave us," Percy walked forward and bowed to the woman. "I promise we won't let you down."

Inyssa rolled her eyes, but that's as far as her disdain went. She just couldn't muster enough energy to really be frustrated with Fantina or anyone else in the room. She felt too happy for that at the moment.

"This might not be a universal rule for all Gym Leaders…" Fantina continued to speak, "but it is mostly agreed that our job is not only to challenge those who come to us, but to properly teach them how to become better trainers and people in the process . I am forgiving, but I am also pragmatic; I will always turn down those who I deem to have no potential. You four have proved yourselves, but only enough to stand at the starting line." Her gaze traveled between them, and Inyssa felt a chill when they set on her. "I will contact you soon and inform you of when we will fight. In the meantime, feel free to celebrate this victory. It's the least you all deserve, considering the amount of effort you put into it."

And with that said she turned around and started walking towards the exit.

"Let's go now, children," they heard her once more, "it's time to give the others a chance."

 

* * *

 

 

The way back to the Pokemon Center was paved with a lightheartedness that Inyssa had sorely missed, despite her not wanting to admit it. As they walked through the outskirts of Route 209 and eventually through Hearthome Reiko wouldn't stop making jokes or comments about what they'd just been through, to the point that it almost seemed like she was doing a play by play. Percy simply smiled as he watched her acting so chipper, his shoulders down and probably mentally exhausted. Barry however was talking almost as much as the red headed girl, and judging by the way they laughed and joked around together one could've easily mistaken them for brother and sister.

Inyssa smiled as she saw him getting back some of the enthusiasm he had lacked that past week. She would've joined them if she weren't so emotionally and mentally drained.

"Ohh I can't wait to know when I'll fight her!" Barry gave little jumps as he walked, his body practically shaking from excitement. "I gotta think of what Pokemon to use too!"

"We'll beat her easy, don't even worry about it," Reiko made a gesture with her hand, chest puffed and showing a confident posture. "Fantina won't know what hit her."

"Perhaps we could even…" Percy spoke, his voice barely audible. "We could do a little training together. I mean, if it's okay with you two."

Inyssa needed a few seconds to realize he was talking to her.

"O-oh…" she tried to think of a response, not expecting that proposal coming from someone like him, "yeah, sure… I guess we can do that.

She went back to silence and hearing the rest of them speak after that. She lowered her hat and tried to hide the smile trying to break through her cold expression. So they weren't… mad at her? Both Reiko and Percy seemed to forget completely how she'd treated them back then in the trial. Or maybe they hadn't but they still wanted to hang out with her despite it. The idea both confused her and sent a strange warmth to her chest.

At least she wouldn't have to apologize. Not out loud anyway.

They made it to the Pokemon Center just before twelve, which was fortunate timing because she was starving. They said goodbye to Percy and Reiko as they went to their rooms to change and shower, and arranged a training meeting with them later that afternoon.

"And I thought they were super scary before," Barry mentioned when they were out of sight. "They're actually really cool."

"By some definitions of the word, I guess," she admitted. "Come on, let's order some meat and potatoes and more meat, I feel like I could eat a Ponyta."

They walked to the counter together, until Barry stopped when he heard the automatic door opening behind them. Inyssa didn't notice it until the boy stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Uh, Niss…" the sudden change in his tone was enough to take her out of her thoughts. "Um…"

She turned around and laid her eyes on the woman who'd just entered the Pokemon Center. She was tall, with her long dark hair tied in a bun, and the color of her eyes were the exact same as hers. Inyssa's mouth hung open, her body and mind frozen.

"Hello sweetie," her mother said, and showed her a smile which extended to her tired eyes. "It's so nice to see you again."

 


	21. The Child of Thorns

Silence covered the table as Inyssa and her mother shared what could be described as a pleasant breakfast if one had a proclivity for describing things in a sarcastic manner.

Between them were a bunch of sugar packages, a silver platter with freshly baked pastries, Johanna's purse and anything else she could find and unconsciously put in front of her. One of her hands grasped the cup of tea she'd ordered out of habit while the other one gently stroked the fur on Kuro's back. The Shinx purred softly in his sleep, sending vibrations and jolts of electricity to her lap.

She took a sip of the tea. Flavorless and rough. It coated her mouth with an unpleasant, sandy feeling similar to that of eating a bad apple. She wondered if she even liked tea, and if not why did she keep fucking ordering it.

She looked at the table on the other side of the room, where Barry and Sarah talked energetically about something she couldn't hear.  _Couple of damn traitors_ , she thought to herself only half jokingly.

"I never expected you to have such a cute team of Pokemon," Johanna spoke, startling her. "You've taken good care of them."

Inyssa stood there frozen, not knowing exactly what to say to that, and then looked down to the rest of her Pokemon eating alongside her. Shadi and Bret shared their meal respectfully, locked in a conversation she couldn't understand, while Steven pecked at the pellet of dry food he'd taken with him to the top of her hat.

Both Enma and Hao had refused to come out, although for different reasons. She arched her brow; she'd have time to take care of that later.

"I chose them for my team because they're strong. Cuteness has nothing to do with it."

Her mother let out a deep sigh, probably restraining herself from rolling her own eyes. "I heard about the trial," she added, attempting to change the subject. "I'm really proud, sweetie."

Inyssa looked down, suddenly very interested in the silverware, "Yeah, it was kinda rough but I managed," she took another sip of the tea and almost choked on it. "Did Fantina tell you about it?"

Now it was Johanna's turn to look away, and Inyssa took that opportunity to study her expression carefully. Heavy bags adorned the underside of her eyes, which were ever so slightly bloodshot, and while her face looked as soft as ever she noticed more than a few new wrinkles at the edges of her mouth and cheeks.

"Yes," she replied still looking down, her hands resting on top of her leg. "We've been… in contact, recently."

"Did she also tell you to come here?"

Inyssa didn't need a response, her mother's mannerisms told her the answer by themselves. She closed her eyes and tried to summon that familiar fire in her belly. She wanted to be mad at the Gym Leader for trying to interfere where she had no business doing so. She wanted to feel furious at her mother for appearing out of nowhere and turning the day of her victory sour, but she just couldn't.

Maybe she was too tired. Maybe something had changed while she was inside that dungeon, but for the first time in years being angry at her took actual effort. And effort was something that was low on supply that morning, to Johanna's fortune.

"Well, it's good she did so," Inyssa crossed her arms as she reclined in the stiff, wooden chair. "You'll finally get to see me fight, and after I beat Fantina effortlessly you'll have to stop worrying about me so much."

The woman looked up, and she felt a small stab in her chest at the sight of her expression brightening, even if it was just a little. She uncrossed her arms and took the cup of tea to her lips, perhaps too abruptly.

"I can't wait," she leaned forward, uttering her words with a sweetness Inyssa barely remembered from long ago.

The beat of her heart turned painful. One. Two. Three, faster than she would've liked, "I'll have to thank Sarah later for giving you a free ride. Sometimes I wonder how that woman gets shit done without drowning herself in caffeine and energy drinks," she chuckled to herself, deciding that rambling for a bit was better than concentrating on what happened behind her chest. "And I'm glad she's here too. The bigger the audience the better, and it'd be a shame if her only memory of my prowess as a trainer was that time I lost to Gardenia."

Johanna nodded, a tinge of nervousness dictating her every action, "Yes, Sarah is too good for this world. I'm sure she could've watched the match online but she chose to be here anyway for both of you."

Her cup froze midway towards her lips, and she lowered it slowly while she tried to process her words.

"Online?" she tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

Johanna stared at her with a confused expression, and after a few moments her eyes opened wide and she gulped.

"Oh. Oh dear…" she put her hands together as her fingers played with each other nervously. "Fantina didn't mention it to you? About… the way her fights work."

Inyssa watched horrified as her mother explained it to her. All of the gym matches would take place in the local Contest Stadium, and they would be televised. Not only that but each contestant was required to wear an outfit designed specifically for the occasion, which wasn't negotiable as she was told very strongly.

She was pretty sure her entire body had turned to ice, which surprised her when she moved forward and she didn't shatter into a million pieces; not on the outside at least. She tried to swallow, but her throat was dry as sandpaper.

"That's one of the reasons Fantina called me here. She's too busy preparing for the fight, so she asked me to choose something for you to wear on that day."

A bright memory came to Inyssa, that of one of her mother's performances back when she was a famous Contest star. She remembered the small blue top she wore, with a fuzzy jacket around it which failed to cover her midriff, and a frilly skirt with very tight shorts below. She suppressed a heave at the thought of… no, she wouldn't…

"I am NOT going to…"

She was interrupted by her mother's hand being raised, "I know what you're thinking and no, you don't have to wear anything you don't like."

That calmed her nerves a bit, "Are you sure? I don't want anything that like… you know…" she looked away as red tinted her cheeks. "You know."

"No need to worry," Johanna couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of her blushing. "Anyone who thinks fashion involves only dresses and revealing outfits is a complete fool. The best clothes are those who fit not only a person's body, but also their personality. Half of a someone's beauty comes from how comfortable they feel, and how that feeling exudes from their body outwards." She nodded to herself, a hint of smugness in her expression.

Inyssa raised an eyebrow, "You… sure seem to know a lot about that."

"It's… it was my passion, Niss," the woman's shoulders lowered. "Fantina taught me everything I know."

"Well at least not all of her passion was rubbed off on you. That woman is unbearable, and her tackiness knows no bounds."

A slight blush covered Johanna's pale cheeks, and Inyssa wondered why. Was it something she said? The woman's hand went to the untouched cup of coffee in front of her.

"Everyone has hobbies," she opened one of the packages of sugar and poured it in as she spoke, "Fantina just happens to be very dedicated to hers."

Inyssa watched in horror as the drink became more sugar than coffee. "That's why her hair forms an  _X_  behind her head?" she muttered to herself, "it's like she has a nest of Murkrows in there. Seriously, I could go to a hairdresser and ask them to fucking kill me and they'd give me something better than that."

"Niss, don't make fun of her." Her mother pointed at her with her well manicured finger. "Besides, you two have a lot more in common than you'd think."

She snorted. "Yeah right, I have in common with her about as much as I have with a Dunsparce. You're both crazy about fashion and I wish you'd keep it to yourselves. I wasn't made to wear cool outfits like you."

Johanna tilted her head forward and showed her a reassuring smile, "Niss, I'm sure you'll look wonderful in the clothes I have in mind for you."

"Oh come on," she couldn't help but laugh at her mother's words. "You don't have to pretend, mom. Contests are for people who are…" she almost choked on the words, but forced herself to let them out, "…good looking."

"Oh honey, you  _are_ …"

"I said don't bother," she repeated, her tone almost a growl. "I'm not in the mood for being lied to."

Johanna blinked a few times, confused, "Do you really think…? Niss, you are beautiful. Anyone can see that…"

"Will you cut it out already?" she hit the table with her fist, making it shake. "If there's something I hate is people lying to my face. Yeah you're right; anyone can see I didn't get your good genes, not that I wanted them in the first place!"

Inyssa couldn't stop the words from coming out, nor the clear poison behind them. She bit her tongue, and quickly looked down to her lap. There it was; the slip up she knew would happen if she spent long enough around her. She tried to chuckle, tried to make it seem like a joke, but to no avail. She felt those familiar needles pricking the inside of her skin.

She looked up towards Johanna. Her lips quivered for a moment and a shadow danced over her eyes, stealing some of the light behind them. Her mother seemed to age ten years in those seconds alone.

She needed to get away before she ruined the small progress they'd made, "Anyway… I should probably get going. Me and Barry wanted to try some Kalosian food for lunch and there's a good restaurant nearby," she lied. "And we have a lot of training to do afterwards, so…"

She grabbed Kuro from his belly and put him down, which prompted the small cub Pokemon to stretch lazily and give her a look of irritation that almost made her feel bad.

"W-wait!" her mother almost tripped on the foot on the table as she stood up. "I mean... sorry, I know I don't... I can't really stop you," she curled her fingers together, avoiding her eyes. "I just... thought we could talk a bit more. About..."

She stopped, apparently not being able to say her next words. Inyssa didn't need a translator for that particular silence; she knew exactly what her mother wanted. She let out a small sigh and placed a hand against her head, barely brushing Steven's wing. Below, her Pokemon did a terrible job at pretending not to be listening to their conversation.

"You want to talk about what happened in Floaroma and Eterna."

Johanna's lower lip trembled as she lowered her gaze to the floor, "I want to talk about a lot of things but …yes, especially that, if you want to. I know I have no right... after everything that's happened but..."

Inyssa choked on the anger trying to rise from her chest to her throat. She concentrated on her face, on her expression. She looked for any sign of her mother trying to manipulate her by guilt tripping her, but that didn't seem to be the case. Her worry was genuine, as was her sadness.

"I got myself and Barry in trouble. More than a couple times. It was my fault, and no one but me should take responsibility for it." For the first time Johanna's eyes met with hers, and Inyssa's voice quivered a bit. "And I'm sorry for worrying you, but I couldn't just stand by while Team Galactic did such horrible things next to me. I had to interfere; I wouldn't have been true to myself otherwise."

Her mother's eyes started to water. She looked down and smiled to herself, "Yeah... I guessed that was it. I wouldn't have expected any less of you." She bit her lip. "I just… worry a lot. I know I'm really bad at showing it but Niss I promise I'm trying to get better and I'm so s…"

"Don't."

She didn't realize she'd raised her hand to stop her until she saw it with her own eyes. She slightly shook her head and took a step backward, attempting to calm her nerves. This wasn't good enough. She had to act properly if she wanted this to be different from all the other times she'd spoken with her.

"Look. Things have been... complicated, to say the least. I've been through some stuff and I don't think I've... had enough time yet, to properly process all of it." She paused to take a breath, almost not believing she was saying those words. "And even less time to think about... us." She put emphasis in that last word. "So I don't think I'm ready to have this talk yet. I'm sorry for not writing you back, and I promise I will from now on, but I still need to sort some things out before... well, you know."

Johanna seemed ready to burst into tears, whether from happiness or something else Inyssa wasn't sure, but managed to contain herself enough not to do so in front of her.

"I understand," she nodded, and formed a crooked smile that extended to her eyes. "Take all the time you need, sweetie. It's the least I owe you."

Inyssa nodded as well, mostly because she didn't thought she'd be able to say anything else without her voice breaking. And without another word she turned around and went to look for Barry, a storm of emotions raging inside her.

 

* * *

 

 

Sarah observed carefully as her son ran from their chair to the exit of the Pokemon Center in the time it took her to blink. Inyssa followed, three of her Pokemon tailing behind her like baby Psyducks and one of them sleeping on top of her hat. She smiled at the image, and even that small effort made the muscles in her face hurt.

She got up and walked towards Johanna, her entire body loudly protesting at every step. She pushed the mountain of exhaustion as down as she could, and tried not to think about the hours of work she'd have to make up for later. Right now her friend needed her, nothing else mattered.

Her fingers gently sat on top of the woman's shoulders, "So... how did it go?"

Johanna took one of her sleeves and started cleaning her tears with it, until se realized what she was doing and grabbed a napkin instead.

"Better than I expected," she said after clearing her throat. "Worse than I wished."

Sarah knit her eyebrows, trying to decipher what the hell that meant, "Well... you know what they say, happy medium and all that. Silver lining."

Johanna crossed her arms and let out a long, premeditated sigh. As perfect and elegant as the rest of her, "I suppose. Let's hope the outfit I have in mind for her will win me some mother points. Maybe I'll finally get her to wear something other than that damned hat."

She laughed. A short, weak laugh that sent pain through every fiber of her being, but one that she enjoyed nonetheless. She leaned against one of the stone pillars close to her, and its cold stuck to her back like the sweat under her clothes. Everything itched, everything hurt. The past weeks had been cruel, giving her more work than she'd ever done in her life and very few opportunities to check on her son and the people she loved.

All thanks to Team Galactic. The name turned sour in her mouth, and the frustration and tiredness rose from the depths of her chest until she was barely able to control them. She was starting to understand how Inyssa felt, and she wasn't the one who had lost a Pokemon to them.

Which brought her to Johanna. She looked up at her friend and found her still with her arms crossed, a scowl adorning her face. She didn't need to be a psychic to know what was bothering her.

"Did you tell her?"

She decided cutting to the chase would be the best course of action.

Johanna wrinkled her nose, and her hands grabbed on strongly to her biceps, "No, I didn't," she sighed again, closing her eyes for a few moments. "How could I? She's happier than I've seen her in years."

"She doesn't need to hear it right now, but at some point..."

"Are you two sharing secrets without me!?" A voice spoke behind them.

Sarah turned around to find Fantina's face only a couple inches from hers. She jumped back a bit but was ultimately too exhausted to be scared. Johanna on the other hand let out a high pitched shriek as she jumped in place and almost tripped on one of the chairs.

"Good morning Fantina," Sarah smiled without much enthusiasm. "Nice of you to join us."

"You scared the soul out of me!" Johanna protested, punching their stalker lightly in the arm. "Were you eavesdropping on us!?"

Fantina scurried to hide behind Sarah, never losing her smile, "My dear Johanna, perish the thought! I just happened to pass by after I finished grading the trial goers and I wished for a nice cup of coffee on my way home!" Her tone made it clear as crystal that she was lying. "All of them failed, by the way. Hurrah for me!"

"Right... and you couldn't ask your servants to make you coffee," Johanna's anger was short lived as a warm smile slowly formed on her lips.

Sarah felt herself being dragged as Fantina brought them both together and put her arms around their shoulders, "It's just been so long since all three of us had a nice lunch together. Now, tell me..." She ducked her head a bit, an ominous grin forming on her lips. "What's this juicy gossip you two were talking about?"

The mood dropped to the floor as both women looked away from her, instead choosing to focus on the floor or walls of the center, which had become very interesting all of a sudden. The Gym leader didn't fail to notice this, and her smile slowly disappeared as the moments went by.

"Ah... not happy news, are they?" She bit her lip, an almost invisible blush appearing in her cheeks. "Well now I feel bad for wanting to know."

Sarah scowled at her friend, and saved to herself the comment that she should've felt bad about eavesdropping regarding of the mood of the news.

"It's fine," she said, freeing herself from Fantina's arms. "You would've found out eventually, since this is official Association business. There have been a couple of sightings of what we think may be one of Shadi's Pokemon."

For the first time all lightheartedness left Fantina's expression. Her eyes opened wide and she let out a small gasp which seemed to make the air around them a lot colder.

"Where!?" Her tone made it sound more like a command than a question. "Which Pokemon?"

Johanna hugged herself, her voice coming out as a whisper, "Her Charizard, Midir."

"It was seen flying northeast towards Veilstone," Sarah clarified. "When I was notified of it I thought it was just a false alarm. Charizard are rare here, but that didn't mean..."

Johanna stomped the ground, startling her, "It was hers! We both saw the photo, didn't we?"

"Yes, we did," she conceded, "I admit it would be extremely unlikely that another Charizard that gigantic could exist in Sinnoh."

Silence spread through the room as the color left from Fantina's skin.

"That day. They never found her Pokemon, did they?" she asked, her breath cold and harsh.

Sarah nodded weakly, "Nor did we find the two people Shadi was training with. All we came across was the corpse of one of her friends at the feet of Victory Road."

Fantina crossed her arms, and her fingers tapped the inside of her arms in an almost rhythmic manner. She furrowed her brow and her lips became thin and pale. It'd been a long time since Sarah had seen that expression on her friend.

Finally she looked up at both of them with cold determination, "I will give you any assistance you need. If Shadi is still alive... then we must find her no matter what."

Johanna barely managed to contain a sob as she spoke, "Fantina... t-thank you..."

"I appreciate it," Sarah said, "but we'll keep this investigation secret until we have more information to go on." She put a firm hand on Fantina's shoulder. "What I do need of you is to look after the people of this town. Team Galactic has been spreading throughout the region, and I fear for the worst. If the Association is not able to stop them we'll need the help of people like you."

Fantina smiled, and the room grew cold enough to make Sarah shiver. The Gym Leader's eyes were dark as night, and thick shadows covered her entire body as she spoke.

"I will not let them set foot in my city," she declared, her voice sending a painful chill down Sarah's spine. "When the moment comes, you can count on me. Both for finding Shadi and for obliterating Team Galactic."

 

* * *

 

 

Three days later Inyssa found herself draped in the outfit her mother had made for her, nervously walking in front of the mirror over and over. She could hear the roar of the Contest stadium's audience out the door and through the hallway leading to the arena.

She stood still in front of the mirror and adjusted her skirt for the millionth time. A wave of reluctant excitement traveled through her body as she laid eyes on herself once more. She'd been trying to think of any defect or bothersome thing about the outfit but she just... couldn't. Even she had to admit Johanna had done an incredible job.

Dark, earth colored boots covered her feet to just below her knees, closing around her green tights laced with intricate vine patterns spiraling upwards through her legs. On top of it she wore a red dress, (not too different in color from her usual long coat) which was well adjusted around her torso and opened up at the skirt and sleeves, adorned with green petal shaped frills at the end of them. And as a finishing touch most of her body was covered in a long black cloak which reached to her ankles, its hood big enough to obscure her eyes when she put it on. Attached to her ear and stuck to her cheek was a small portable microphone that she was assured would only turn on when she entered the arena.

She did a little twirl in front of the mirror and the outfit moved as if it were part of her own body. The colors, the rose motif, the fabric and cut, everything was so perfect and she looked so cool she had to stop herself from jumping from joy. Which was good because the door opened just then, and the rest of the challengers entered the room.

She turned around towards Barry and her heart almost jumped out of her chest. He wore tight black pants and shirt which were torn in various places and covered in strange leather belts. On top of it he had a bright yellow jacket with a fuzzy collar and lighting bolts going from his back to his sleeves. His hair was combed backwards in a  _rockstar_  style and his smile was as present as ever.

She was very, very glad her hood covered most of her face. For reasons completely unrelated to how amazing Barry looked. Absolutely. Definitely.

"Niss, holy Beedrills!" He closed his hands into fists and stomped the floor with excitement. "That's so cool! You look like a flower wizard!"

Percy couldn't help but laugh, "That's... an interesting description. I like it, even if it lacks a bit of class."

"Lots of personality!" Reiko gave her a thumbs up. "I love it."

Inyssa tried to swallow her embarrassment and nodded weakly, keeping her head down. Through the thick fabric of her hood she saw the other two's outfits. Reiko reminded her of an ancient Kantonian warrior: hard leather armor covered her torso and left free the entirety of her arms, wearing below a thick skirt covered in leather stripes. A crimson cloak covered her shoulders and reached down to her brown sandals. Percy on the other hand was the most normal looking of them; all he had to show was a tailored dark blue suit with lotus patterns on it and below it a white shirt and black tie. A silver pocket watch hung from his hip.

"Simplicity is elegance," he shrugged, forming a smile so smug it rivaled one of her own.

Reiko gave him a soft kick in the shin which managed to shut him up, "Yeah yeah we all know you're pretty," she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "So, are y'all ready for this? You better be if you don't want me to slap some sense into you."

Inyssa lowered her head even more as she heard Barry and Percy confirm that they were indeed ready for the upcoming fight. She took a deep breath and inhaled the lavender scent of her dress. Her favorite, and her mother knew it.

"Inyssa Dawn!" A thundering voice reverberated through the stadium. "Please approach the arena."

She grabbed onto her chest strongly, and tried to calm her nerves as Barry put a hand on her shoulder. As amazing as her outfit was she felt just a bit out of place in it. She missed the weight of her hat and she felt her neck just a bit too exposed without her scarf.

She forced herself to push those insignificant thoughts to the back of her mind. This was her chance; her first official battle in front of the entirety of Sinnoh. She'd trained for this, she'd lived for this. She would not let everyone down at such a moment.

"I'm ready," she growled as she walked towards the door, raising her head proudly.

 

* * *

 

 

The stadium was loud. Really fucking loud, and bright too. And probably a few other adjectives she would've thought of if she weren't trying with all her might to make her legs stop trembling.

A sea of unrecognizable faces and screams drowned the podiums and the only thing Inyssa could do was ignore them as she made her way towards her side of the arena. Sarah and her mother were probably somewhere up there, watching, judging. She dared not look up in fear she might recognize them and then she'd have to feel the weight of their eyes on her the entire match.

No, this was just between her and Fantina. The audience was nothing more than background noise.

Said Gym Leader stood across her, standing out as only she could. Her dress was red like hers, although more vibrant and revealing. Similar petal-like folds formed the majority of it and just below the skirt a few very thin frills went up towards her hips. She didn't need to be Gardenia to know what it was supposed to represent: Red Spider Lily, the flower of the dead.

"Inyssa Dawn," her voice came out of the several speakers adorning the sides of the stadium, "welcome to my glorious battlefield."

A snort escaped her lips.

"Dork," she whispered before remembering the small mic attached to her cheek. An explosion of laughter shook the podiums above and she felt her face going red. "Shit, I mean..."

"Quaint as always," even Fantina let out a small giggle as she made a Pokeball appear out of thin air. "It's okay, you don't need to play along with the silliness of this old woman. I'm sure your battling will speak magnitudes louder than your words. Now, shall we begin?"

Ovations rained from the podiums, and she could even make out her name in the chaos that were their screams. She lowered her head a bit, her hood hiding most of her face, and smiled.

She grabbed her chosen Pokeball from her belt, "Bring it on."

Both trainers released their Pokemon, and at that exact moment music began to play.

Inyssa was almost too concentrated to realize, but she recognized the dulcet notes of an acoustic guitar traveling through the air.  _Of course she'd also want musical accompaniment_ , she thought. The woman really spared no expense when it came to her performances.

Not that it mattered. She focused on the arena in front of her and saw the two Pokemon emerge from light. On her side stood Kuro, looking different than he'd done just a couple days ago. His body had grown to almost twice its size, and thick black fur covered his neck and the outlines of his face. Fantina's Pokemon was a lot smaller than she'd expected. It floated above ground with its hands behind its back, staring at them with one glowing, red eye. A skull mask covered about half of its entire body.

Inyssa narrowed her eyes as she studied the Duskull, while the sound of the guitar grew faster and more intense with each second. That thing was native from Hoenn, she knew that much. And while It didn't look very intimidating she was sure there was a reason Fantina chose it.

"Your Luxio's fur is dashing," Fantina mentioned excitedly. "You must take good care of him."

"Thanks. Your Duskull is hideous," she replied offhandedly. "Kuro, Bite!"

"Ulric, you know what to do!"

The Luxio lowered his front legs and jumped towards his opponent, leaving a small trail of electricity as he ran. The music seemed to approach a climax as the electric Pokemon jumped to attack, fangs glistening with dark energy. A soft, woman's voice started singing and Inyssa almost froze.

_My dear rose girl... tell me something:_

The Duskull's body began to glow too, and she almost didn't realize it due to the surprise of recognizing the music playing around her. She grit her teeth; of course that old hag would find out about her favorite song; she was good friends with her mother after all.

_Will your roots take hold of me?_

She pushed the thought out of her mind and tried to concentrate on the battle, "Kuro, like we practiced!"

Just before his maw closed around the ghost Pokemon he disappeared, leaving only electricity where his body was before. The Duskull's creepy demeanor turned to surprise. The purple glow evaporated from its body and a shadow appeared behind it.

_Winter's wrath will set you free and..._

Kuro's fangs closed around his opponent, whose scream was so high pitched Inyssa had to cover her ears. The Luxio didn't seem to mind, as he pinned down the Duskull to the ground, biting harder and harder until it fell completely unconscious. Fantina simply stood and watched, a look of shock on her face.

_turn your petals into blades._

"That glow... Destiny Bond, right?" Inyssa spoke, forcing the Gym Leader to pay attention to her. "I took notes on those cheap tricks your Pokemon used during the trial, and I'm not gonna fall for any of them."

Fantina laughed. An honest, cold laugh that made the hair in her arms stand up. "Wonderful, Inyssa. I shouldn't have expected less of you..."

_Red as blood and pale as Lady Moon._

"...but this is as far as you go. Atlanta, it's your turn!"

_Forlorn fingers reach for..._

_the sun._

The melody exploded into a frenzy as the new Pokemon appeared on the field. She recognized the disembodied hands and red grin instantly; a Haunter. Quite a bit bigger and definitely more menacing than those she'd encountered in the Lost Tower. Her body shook and shifted with each chuckle that came out of her and her hands opened and closed eagerly, eyes set on Kuro.

Inyssa's fingers closed around the Pokeball until they turned pale, and the music grew even more chaotic.

"Kuro, keep it up!" She yelled, "use Bite again!"

Fantina crossed her arms and smiled, "Sucker Punch."

_Rose girl, rose girl tell me something!_

The Luxio got into position, but when he raised his head again the Haunter had completely banished. Both Pokemon and trainer looked around confused, although only Inyssa saw Kuro's shadow grow behind him, becoming darker as something emerged from it. She had no time to shout a warning before the Haunter jumped from it and punched him with a hand covered in shadows, sending his body flying halfway across the arena.

_What am I to do with you?_

Her nails dug deep into her palms as the chorus filled the stadium, "Kuro, run around while looking for an opening! Don't give her any chance to do that again!"

The Luxio's body became a blur as he started to run in circles around his opponent, bright eyes set on his prey and his fangs clear for her to see. The Haunter simply stood in place and laughed, not making any attempt to strike first.

Both Inyssa and Kuro spotted the opening at the same time, and no words were needed as the cub Pokemon stopped suddenly and jumped towards the ghost's back, ready to trap her within his maw.

_Tell me, tell me!_

Her body vanished once more, and before he could even land another purple fist hit him in the stomach, sending him to the ground.

_Is your dream worth all this pain?_

Fantina spoke, "If what you want is a contest of speed then I'm afraid you have no chance against my dear Atlanta."

 _Oh my god shut the fuck up_  is what she wanted to say, but between the music and cheering invading her ears, the disappointment of having Kuro fall so early and the little bit of self-restraint she had left she decided not to. Instead she focused on how heavy her arm felt as she raised her Pokeball towards Kuro and returned him to it.

Speed. That was the problem she had to deal with at the moment. She needed to counteract Haunter's speed if she wanted any chance to land a hit on her.

_This time it was meant to..._

Kuro was her second fastest Pokemon, and she'd already promised herself she wouldn't use Enma in battle. Not until he learned his lesson. That only left her with one choice; luckily it was a choice she'd been preparing to make use of during training.

She threw her second Pokeball to the air, "Shadi! Your turn!"

_...not become what it once did._

The Kricketune landed on the ground on the tip of her toes, the scythes that were her arms shining under the sunlight. Her eyes met with the Haunter's and her mustache twitched a bit; the only sign of nervousness she would show to the world.

Inyssa couldn't help but smile. She'd come so far already...

_But surprise is a gift to,_

_those without eyes such as mine._

"That's an... interesting choice," Fantina tapped her chin with one of her fingers, "haven't got the type chart memorized yet, darling? You do know that bug Pokemon aren't very effective against ghosts, don't you?"

Inyssa laughed. Maybe because for the first time the woman's taunts weren't getting to her, or perhaps because she had a plan and she couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she pulled it off.

"Sucker punch once more, my beauty."

"Use Bide!"

_How could in such a barren garden,_

Shadi crossed her scythes in front of her as she received the Haunter's punch head on. The impact sent her a few feet backwards, although it didn't do much in terms of damage. Thin threads of steam started to rise from the Kricketune's body as she gathered energy.

"How cute, but I won't let it work," Fantina sent her arm forward, palm opened. "Shadow Ball!"

_appear a child as strong as you?_

Haunter opened her mouth and a massive sphere of darkness started to form in front of her. It was easily twice as big as her body and it seemed to be emitting cold towards the rest of the arena. Inyssa grit her teeth, and she felt sweat dripping down her back.

She fired it without warning, and she was pretty sure Shadi couldn't have dodged even if she tried. The impact raised a cloud of dust which flew up towards the podiums, and by the time the wind cleared it she saw her Pokemon standing firm, multiple scorches covering the front of her body.

_Pray I never find a foe..._

She couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. The Kricketune's skin glowed even more red as she was entirely surrounded by steam. She was having trouble even controlling the energy she'd gathered.

"My my, how scary," the Gym Leader put one of her palms against her cheek, feigning horror. "Still, how do you expect to hit my Atlanta with such a slow, wounded Pokemon?"

Inyssa smiled, showing her teeth to Fantina like a beast flashing its fangs towards its prey.

_Pray I never hate someone so much..._

"Shadi, send all that energy to your legs!" She ordered. "Fury Cutter, like we practiced!"

Fantina's smile evaporated completely, "Wait, what?"

The red glow that covered Shadi's entire body focused on her tiny legs, and the force of her jump created a small vacuum that sent all the dust backwards. As her body flew to the Haunter she put her scythes at her sides, and began spinning with enough speed to turn her body into a blur.

_That I'd send them a rose such as you._

"A-Atlanta, dodge!" Fantina yelled, desperation on her voice. "Don't let it hit you!"

The Haunter vanished into thin air once again, but as soon as she appeared at the other side of the arena she saw Shadi veer her trajectory and head towards her once more, her body a whirlwind of scythes that the ghost Pokemon had no chance of evading.

Inyssa pointed at their foe and decided to take a page out of Barry's book, "Reaper's Waltz, now!"

Shadi fell on top of Haunter with overwhelming strength, pinning her against the ground and slashing her body repeatedly, each strike causing more and more damage until the ghost moved no more.

_I'd much rather keep you close and..._

"What's wrong, darling?" Inyssa spoke again, badly imitating Fantina's tone and accent. "You do know that Haunter has horrible defenses, don't you?"

The notes of the song almost came to a halt as the Gym Leader returned her Pokemon, expression covered in shadows. They advanced slowly, carefully, and Inyssa could feel a chill of anticipation running down her spine.

… _save you from the light you seek_.

"I am impressed," she whispered into her mic, her voice soft and musical. "Let's see if you can finish this with the same smile on your face."

Her last Pokemon appeared, and Inyssa had trouble identifying it. It floated just like the last two, and was dark, deep purple. On top of his round head sat elaborate tufts that resembled a witch's hat, and his body looked like a dark cloak floating amidst the wind, its tips a bit paler than the rest of his body. Three red gems adorned his chest.

"Meet , my Mismagius," said Fantina, and Inyssa had to make sure she'd heard that name correctly. "He will be ending the fight now.

_Trust me, shadow's kisses are comforting,_

Inyssa shook her head as she tried to force herself to look at something other than the beautiful ghost Pokemon in front of her. She had no time to lose.

"Shadi, use the energy you have left from that Bide! Keep attacking!"

_and the sun was never meant to love forever._

The Kricketune jumped towards her opponent, eyes beaming with determination. Her scythes glowed with a sinister green light but her body didn't move as fast as before, and Inyssa wasn't sure the attack would be able to connect.

Which it did, cutting the Mismagius in half and making his body dissipate into smoke.

Shadi stared in confusion as a dozen Mismagius appeared around her, slowly spiraling and staring down at her with their gleaming yellow eyes. Inyssa needed more time than she should have to realize that he was using Double Team, and by then it was too late.

All of them jumped towards the Kricketune, who attacked the first one she could and turned it to smoke as well. The real Mismagius appeared behind her, and without warning shot a Shadow Ball point blank into her back. Inyssa gasped and took her hands to her mouth, ice forming in her throat.

_May your thorns not lose their edge and,_

Shadi fell to the ground, unconscious. Her back was completely black.

Fantina sent her another taunt, but Inyssa wasn't listening, too focused on whether her Pokemon was still breathing. Once she made sure she was the cold covering most of her body evaporated, and she returned Shadi to her Pokeball with a sigh of relief.

She looked up to the Gym leader, and did her best not to show the hesitation she was feeling. Both the song and the cheers and screams of the audience rang in her mind. Her limbs were trembling, and she could feel her breathing become heavier and heavier.

_may your soul grow deep and kind._

She smiled to herself, fingers curling into fists. That was the exact feeling she'd been looking for. The exhilaration of a true fight.

Should she send Bret? He was strong but none of his attacks would be effective against a ghost Pokemon. Steven? No, he wasn't fast enough and his aerial advantage would be useless against someone who could float. And Enma wasn't an option either; she had to prove that she didn't rely on her starter to win.

That only left one choice, and she shivered at the thought of it. Another jolt of electricity hit her hip, and her sight went down towards the Pokeball that contained Hao.

_Rose girl, rose girl,_

She held it in front of her eyes and she could swear she felt power rushing from it towards her fingers and throughout her entire body. Hao was strong, she knew that better than anyone, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to control him. Last time she'd tried had been a couple days ago during training, and the ghost Pokemon had listened to her for only a few seconds before becoming... unstable.

_how could you forget?_

She felt the hair on the back of her head stand up as she spoke, "Listen to me... I need you. I know you're not fond of me, but I promise that if you lend me your strength..." she closed her eyes and drew a deep breath. "I will let you do whatever you want. Even if you want me to release you, I will say yes to your request."

She threw the Pokeball into the air, its light materializing into Hao. Just like she'd seen before his red body made of plasma shifted and cackled with the white energy that surrounded him. She could not read his expression, as his blue eyes were blank and dull.

_Your petals turn black and,_

"Oh my..." Fantina spoke, unable to hide the surprise in her voice. "Now that's something I wasn't expecting."

She locked eyes with the Pokemon and pointed towards the Mismagius, "I trust you, Hao. Please help me."

_your leaves will burn and wither for this._

The Rotom stared at her for a few moments, and just when that horrible burnt stench invaded her mind and she thought she wouldn't be able to sustain the weight of his eyes, he turned around. No words came out of him, but she somehow understood. He would fight.

"T-thank you..." she whispered, and attempted to smile.

_May you see the way out of this garden,_

Fantina punched the air forward, lips curling into an unhinged smile, "That's the spirit! We shall end it with this attack: Shadow Ball!"

"Discharge!" Inyssa yelled at the top of her lungs.

_may your roots not bind you..._

Hao let out a high-pitched scream as electricity erupted from his body, traveling towards the ball of darkness currently heading his way. Both attacks clashed in the middle of the arena and the resulting explosion almost sent both trainers to the ground. The earth beneath her feet shook and a gust of wind hit her in the face as both Pokemon were covered in dust.

_until the day you die._

The entire stadium held its breath. As the arena cleared they could see the silhouette of one of the Pokemon laying on the ground.

_Oh, my child of thorns..._

Inyssa's lip trembled as she saw Hao floating above the unconscious body of his opponent, cackling with the remnants of his attack.

_please escape from this garden,_

"Well, would you look at that," she heard Fantina's voice in the back of her mind, "looks like we have a winner, folks."

_and meet the world we left behind._

The resulting explosion of ovations and screams almost deafened her. Her knees felt made of jelly. She closed her eyes and let out a small laugh that almost sounded like a sob.

She'd won. Her first official battle in front of the entire world.

Without thinking she took the hood off, showing her face to the cameras. She turned toward them, and opened her mouth to speak.

Later that day she had to ask herself why she did what she did. Perhaps it was the euphoria she felt, perhaps it was the hundreds of voices chanting her name. Or maybe she'd been dreaming of doing such a thing since she was a child, and couldn't simply waste the opportunity.

"To the current Champion of Sinnoh!" She pointed her finger towards the sky, a huge smile adorning her face. "I hope you've enjoyed your twelve years of being undefeated, because I'm coming for you." She closed her hand into a fist, so strongly that her fingertips turned white. "I'm going to take your title, whether you like it or not!"

 

* * *

 

 

Hundreds of miles from the stadium, inside the Champion's palace at the Lily of the Valley island there was a woman. She sat in a leather couch, and her fingers moved a glass of wine as she saw the battle unfold through her television.

She heard the girl's words, and her body froze. Not because of fear or surprise, but because of something much more primal and dangerous.

The woman's lips curled upwards, and the entire world felt the weight of her smile.

"Inyssa, eh? How fitting," she whispered, savoring the name she'd just heard. "Very well, I will accept your challenge."


	22. Intermission: Moonless Night

West of Veilstone city stood what some called the Barren Forest. It was stuck between the northern, most remote part of Mt Coronet and the sea itself, which meant access to it was both difficult an unrewarding. All anyone could gain from exploring such land would be cold winds, tall trees and wet mud. The ground was not fertile for any kind of plant native to Sinnoh, and very few Pokemon called such place their home.

The only location of importance was a massive grey edifice built at the edge of the precipice. Its walls were reinforced with the strongest metal and every angle was carefully monitored by the latest, state of the art surveillance cameras. A round, yellow "G" adorned the top floor and announced to the entire world that this was the main headquarters of Team Galactic.

Unfortunately such display was in vain, as the building itself was invisible to the normal eye. A cloak of psychic energy bent the light around it to ensure no ordinary human could find the place.

But an ordinary human was the exact opposite of what the hooded stranger was, and as such she spotted the building as her silent steps left the forest behind. She raised her head slightly, and her eyes set on the two figures guarding the gates. She formed a tired, satisfied smile and walked towards them.

About three hundred yards away one of the guards shifted his weight from one foot to another, mist escaping his lips with every breath he took. His partner leaned against a pillar, arms crossed and teeth clenching. They wore similar grey outfits, with the yellow Galactic logo stamped on their chests.

The tall man rubbed his hands together and breathed into them as he spoke, "Cold like this should be illegal. This is not okay."

The young girl laughed, although judging by the way her body trembled it could've been confused by her ragged breathing.

"We do illegal shit all the time, man. Your statement doesn't mean anything."

"I'd tell you where to shove that semantics of yours," he shot her an annoyed look, "but unlike me you're underage and I have standards."

"Now that's a good one. If you told jokes that funny more often maybe Jupiter wouldn't have put you on night patrol."

The man grumbled something about Jupiter and a few less than gratuitous curses as he turned his sight towards the forest once more. His eyes felt heavy and dry due the wind, and he began to fear a cold might be starting to set in on his body. He exhaled again, and the mist in front of his mouth reminded him of the smoke of a cigarette. How he missed those.

His mind was too busy fantasizing about the warm beaches of Sunnyshore when a dark silhouette appeared at the edge of his vision.

His body sprang up and he took a couple steps forwards, one of his hands hovering close to his belt, "Did you see that?"

"See what?" his partner answered sheepishly. "There's nothing there."

He blinked repeatedly as he tried to focus on the exact point he'd seen that shadow at. After a few seconds however his shoulders dropped and he let out a deep sigh, walking back towards his spot.

"Guess the lack of sleep is making me paranoid," he whispered. "Could really use a beer or a snack right now."

She clicked her tongue at him, "You know that ain't happening. We barely get enough food from the supply ships that the boss gets for us. Those don't even carry proper condiments so what makes you think they'll bring alcohol or sweets?"

"Wishful thinking," he shrugged. "Some of the grunts bring stuff with them after missions, but only a couple of them sell shit and it's really expensive," he took a step forward and spat into the floor. "The hell do they need the money for? It's not like we'll have a use for it after we accomplish our goal."

She simply looked at the sky and balanced on the ball of her feet, hands deep in her pockets, "It's the weight of the bills in your pocket, man. Makes you feel good, like a belly full of food after a long day of work," she smiled to herself as she closed her eyes. "It's emotionally fulfilling in a way you wouldn't understand."

"Fucking weirdo," he whispered under his breath. "Only thing that matters is…"

"Hello."

They felt a vacuum of air between them as a person appeared from nothingness.

His partner choked on a scream as she launched herself backwards and hit her head on one of the pillars. He made a few sounds that could've been interpreted as a mix of a sob and a curse. Both of them were too shocked to say anything coherent.

He blinked twice, and the hope that the stranger was just an illusion vanished. He could barely make up her outfit even though they were only a couple feet apart, almost like his eyes were seeing a blank space where most of her body was. The only concrete thing he could recognize about her was the long, black cloak which covered her shoulders and went to her ankles, a dark hood over most of her face.

"Is this a bad time?" she spoke again, a hint of worry in her voice.

The man took one of the Pokeballs from his belt and pointed it at the stranger, "Who are you!? How did you…" he tried to come up with the words but his mind was too hazy to get them out properly. "How did you find this place?"

The stranger looked at him, though it was hard to tell due to her eyes being hidden by shadows, and then looked at the young girl whose body was leaning so hard against the pillar that it looked like she wanted to melt into it. A line formed across her forehead, and her trembling limbs told the stranger she was scared. She smiled. Scared was good, it was something she could work with.

"I'm here to speak with your boss," she dragged her words slowly, like it was a chore to even speak. "I'd appreciate it if you could let me in."

Both guards looked at each other in disbelief, while the stranger showed no sign of wanting to move from her spot.

"How… did you find this place?" the man's voice quivered as he spoke. "You can't be here."

"D-did the barrier fail?" his partner added.

The hooded woman raised her left hand and started scratching her cheek. "no, nothing like that. I'm just good at scurrying between forgotten places."

"Answer my question!" he demanded as he tried to process her words. "Who are you!?"

"Oh, right. Sorry for not introducing myself before," she rubbed the back of her neck with her left hand. "It's been a long while on the road and I guess my social skills are more than a little rusty."

"Get to the point."

"Sorry, sorry. You could say that I'm one of your boss'… somewhat close friends," she smiled to herself. "Yes, let's go with that. I'm here to have a chat with him. As for you two…" she left the sentence open, but after seeing that the guards weren't responding she spoke again. "What kind of terrible constellation name did he give you? I have to call you something."

The grunt's postures seemed to relax after hearing the stranger's words, but their eyes were still set on her with a grim look.

"Pyxis," said the girl.

"Orion," the man added. "And… I'm sorry, but I feel like the boss would've told us something if he were expecting someone."

"Oh, he wasn't."

Orion raised an eyebrow, "Ex…cuse me?"

"He doesn't know I'm visiting him. I couldn't contact him before so I decided a surprise meeting would be best."

They exchanged another look, and Pyxis took a couple steps towards the hooded stranger.

"Sorry pal, we can't let you in," she tried to sound as non threatening as possible, since her legs were still visibly shaking. "We kinda… have to guard these gates and if we left someone in without…"

The woman raised her left hand to Pyxis, open palm facing forward, "Tell you what. Go inside and tell the boss his good friend is here. I'm sure he'll understand and make an exception just this time."

"I…" Orion looked at his partner, who simply shrugged, "I guess we can do that. Pyxis, go in and ask the other grunts how to get to the boss' office. And you…" he pointed at the hooded stranger with the hand that held the Pokeball. "Stay right there. Any sudden movement and you'll be in trouble."

"I'll behave."

Pyxis shot the stranger another iffy look, and without saying anything else she turned around and walked through the gates into the darkness of the hallways. She was left alone with Orion, who seemed more than a little uncomfortable with the situation. His feet tapped the ground rhythmically and his eyes were set on her.

The silence went on for about a minute in which the stranger did nothing but stand there, to the point where Orion feared she might've fallen asleep on the spot. But after a while she raised her head ever so slightly, and opened her mouth to speak.

"I changed my mind," she said, rough voice. "Can I sit down while we wait? My feet are killing me."

Orion stammered, not knowing what to make of her behavior. "I, uh… yes? As long as you don't try anything."

The stranger whispered a  _Thanks_  and headed to one of the steel walls, where she let herself fall against it with a sigh of relief which sounded just a bit exaggerated. She searched the inside of her cloak and pulled out a metal flask the size of her palm, which she proceeded to open and take to her lips. Nothing came out of it however, judging by the irritated growl she made.

"Piece of shit…" she whispered, lowering her head even more.

She put it back inside one of her pockets and stayed still again, leaving Orion with about a million questions buzzing inside his head. He didn't ask any of them, because a far back part of his mind deemed appropriate that he should be scared of this woman. So he simply observed her as she breathed in an out, the fingers on her left hand gently tapping her leg.

He focused his eyes and realized there was something strange about her silhouette. Her right side seemed almost… empty, like something was missing. The dark cloth flapped against her side with each gust of wind, showing no sides of her right arm. He wondered if she had lost it somehow, and then also wondered if he should feel bad about it.

He didn't have time for any of that, as Pyxis came through the gates as soon as his mind had arrived to that conclusion. His partner looked at him with a worried expression, her back arched and her lips stretched thin. The stranger got up slowly as she approached them, with a difficulty that surprised Orion.

"The guards on the upper floor didn't let me pass," she explained, voice thin. "They said I didn't have the privilege to speak with the boss. Sorry."

For a moment Orion thought the stranger would've reacted negatively and prepared to let his Pokemon out, but she simply let out a dry laugh.

"Should've expected it," she said between chuckles. "Don't worry, you did what you could."

Orion shifted in place, eyes widened, "So… are you going to leave?"

The stranger tilted her head to the side, and formed an awkward smile that he would've expected from someone as young as Pyxis.

"No. I apologize if this causes you any trouble, but I still have to go in."

This time her words were charged with an undertone of threat they couldn't ignore. Both grunts moved until they were shoulder to shoulder, and they grabbed each a Pokeball.

Pyxis' voice shook as she tried to give a warning, "W-we're gonna use our Pokemon on you if you keep insisting!"

"Leave," Orion ordered. "We're done playing games. Take one more step and we'll be forced to hurt you."

The stranger first looked at Orion, then at Pyxis. Then she lowered her shoulders and let out a deep sigh.

"I don't want to fight my way in, but I'm not above it either," she said in a strangely serious tone. "Trust me, I'm far more merciful than  _he_ is, and I promise that if you step away I won't let him do to you what he so desperately wants."

Both guards were momentarily paralyzed by the woman's tone, which hit them like a blizzard. It spread throughout their entire bodies down to the bone, and Orion could barely open his mouth to respond, his mind filling with fear.

"Listen you little…!"

A limb of shadow the size of the woman's body emerged from inside her cloak, and before Orion had time to react his body was slammed against one of the walls, the dark fingers of the stranger's ghostly right hand closing around him.

Pyxis wanted to scream, but she felt the air evaporating around her as she saw her partner struggling against the woman's strange power. A purple glow traveled from her cloak to the shadow arm and to Orion's body, and after only a moment the man went completely limp. She let go of him then, and he fell to the ground as if he were a ragdoll.

Feeling her veins turn to ice she lowered her sight towards him, and choked on something akin to both a sob and a scream. The white of his eyes had turned completely black. He was still breathing, but barely.

"Now…"

She shivered at the sound of the stranger's voice, and would have clashed her back against the pillar once more if her body weren't frozen by fear. She looked up to her, and felt something pierce into her very soul.

A few moments before she'd been able to steal a glimpse from the dull green that were her eyes, but something had changed. They were a soft blue now, as peaceful and expansive as winter itself. She felt her limbs falling asleep, and she struggled to keep her eyes open as darkness swallowed the edges of her vision.

She wanted to sleep so badly. To fall onto the cold ground and let the world disappear around her. She was about to do that very thing until the stranger's voice brought her back to reality.

"Will you let me in?"

Pyxis tried to speak but only non coherent sounds came out of her mouth. The woman's shadow limb was completely gone now, and she looked as clueless and goofy as she'd done less than a minute ago. She gulped, and tried her best to answer.

"Y-yes," she whispered so low the stranger could barely hear it. "You… you can pass."

"Thank you."

As if nothing had happened the stranger walked towards Pyxis and gave her a small pat on the shoulder with her left hand. She then opened one of the gates and vanished into the darkness of the building, leaving her alone with more than a few questions and the unconscious body of her partner lying on the floor.

 

* * *

 

 

The quiet man sat behind his desk, one hand grasping a sheet of paper and the other one typing into the keyboard of his laptop. His office was located at the highest floor of the building, and behind him two tall windows opened to a view of the expanding sea, moonlight parting it in half with what seemed like a spear of white.

It had been a long time since the man had a desire to look back at such a view.

He heard screams and the sound of battle coming from the lower floors, and yet this did not worry him. He then heard the two guards outside his door whimper in pain and fall to the ground, and this did not worry him either. He barely looked up when a stranger opened the door to his office and let herself in, face covered by a black hood.

"Sorry for the noise."

He looked up at her. He also tried to summon that feeling of frustration he barely remembered from his past, but to no avail.

She took a few steps forward, examining the room around her, "You know, you could've made it easier for both of us if you told your grunts to let me pass."

"I'm busy," he spoke with a calm, toneless voice. "What do you want?"

"I'll get right to that, but first…" she started scratching her nose, shoulders lowered. "Do you have anything to drink?"

The man blinked a few times, and slowly he put his paper down on the mahogany table in front of him.

"A drink," he repeated.

She smiled nervously, "Cyrus, it's been two days since I ran out supplies and you have no idea how thirsty I am."

Two fingers closed around the bridge of his nose as he let out a sigh. Another one was raised and pointed at the cold storage unit at his right, a tall metal rectangle covered in finely crafted wood.

"There's water there."

Not being very subtle about her desperation she made her way to it and opened the door, "No alcohol, eh?"

"I have no use for that," was his response.

She shrugged and took off her hood before grabbing one of the water bottles inside. Under it was a curtain of black hair that reached just beneath her shoulders, tied into a hastily done ponytail. Her face was pale and had the slightest hint of a sickly glow to it, and her eyes were a dull and colorless green. A thin, red line of maimed flesh went from her cheek to her neck, the same scar he'd seen the last time they met.

He continued to study her carefully as she opened the bottle with difficulty and drank all of it in one go. She proceeded to do the same with another bottle, and then another. When it seemed like she was finally satisfied she grabbed another five from inside the refrigerator and hid them in different pockets beneath her cloak. Cyrus looked down at his clock with a bored expression.

"You are a life saver," she said as she closed the door, leaving two of the bottles laying in the ground. "Well, not really. Not in general at least."

"What do you want, Shadi?"

She shot him a smile which didn't extend to her eyes, and with a slow step she walked towards the other side of his desk and sat down in one of the chairs. He couldn't help but look down at the spot beneath her cloak where her right arm was missing.

"I thought we could have a talk." The dull green of her eyes set on the view behind him as she spoke. "Regarding some recent events that have transpired."

He didn't react in the slightest as he listened to her, and after a few seconds of his silence Shadi sighed and shook her head, disappointed by his lack of enthusiasm.

"So…" she clicked her tongue at him, brow furrowed, "it has come to my attention that my sister ran across some of your associates a few times now."

A cold gust of wind hit Cyrus' back as she spoke. He decided to choose his words carefully, "That seems to be the case, yes."

"And for the purpose of making this meeting as pleasant as possible, I'll choose to assume that you weren't aware she was my sister until recently."

Cyrus narrowed his eyes as he felt the air turn thicker around him. Shadows began to dance at the edges of his vision and the lamps hanging from the ceiling blinked as if they were about to go out.

"I was not aware, no," he nodded slowly. "I only realized that when she shouted her name at the end of her match against Fantina."

Shadi's eyes widened as a smile started to form at the edges of her lips. "Wait, she already beat Fantina? That's amazing!"

"Yes, she did so yesterday. I was carefully studying the Gym Leader's schedule when I came across the broadcast of her battle," he spoke, his voice devoid of any emotion. "She won, and right after she made a declaration of war against the Champion."

Shadi broke into laughter. She placed a hand over her stomach and lowered her head as waves of fruity giggles sent spasms through her body. She kept it up for about ten seconds and then leaned back on her chair, wiping a tear with her finger.

"Oh boy… isn't that fitting as hell. Shouldn't have expected anything else, to be honest."

"Naturally," he whispered, feeling a pint of impatience build within him. "Would you mind getting back to the subject at hand?"

"Right, right. As I was saying…" she leaned forward into the desk and looked at the man sitting across. "I also noticed that she almost died twice fighting Team Galactic."

The weight of her last words fell on top of him and turned his shoulders heavy. He swallowed and tried not to show any sign of weakness.

"She tried to interfere with our plans, and my commanders acted accordingly," he explained as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Yeah… that's not an excuse I'm willing to accept. I personally had to bail her out in Eterna, which drained me pretty badly and alerted…  _her_ , to my location."

"So it was you back then…" Cyrus nodded to himself as he stroked his chin lightly. "I imagined that was the case when they all escaped unharmed."

"And I'm not in a position to repeat a feat like that, reason why I came here."

The cold man curled his fingers together as he tried to believe what he was hearing, "Would you really waste a bargaining opportunity on something as feeble as family?"

Shadi laughed again, although this time he could feel waves of cold hit him with every chuckle that came out of her mouth.

"Ahh… no, I'm sorry Cyrus but this is not a bargain." Her voice danced around him and his limbs suddenly felt heavier and less responsive. "This is an ultimatum."

"Is it now?" he whispered, trying to keep his eyes from closing. The cold air exuding from Shadi's body was starting to affect him.

She blinked once, and the green of her eyes turned into a soft blue. Her tone turned cold and her words sharp.

"You will send a message to every one of your subordinates, and you will tell them not to harm my sister," she explained. "Not even if she actively looks for them. Not even if she tries to stop them."

Cyrus's fingers curled into each other, turning pale. "And what makes you think I would agree to something like that? I am not afraid of your power."

"I thought you'd say something like that."

She raised her left arm and clicked her fingers, and Cyrus felt a pair of eyes on his back.

He finally felt a need to look at the view behind him, although for a different reason than he would've expected.

The head of the Pokemon staring at him was easily the size of his entire body, and her glowing red eyes made his hurt from just looking at them. A pair of orange and green wings grew from the back of her round body and flapped strongly, sending violent gusts of wind throughout the room. Her long, scaly tail moved behind her and the tip burned with a flame so hot it changed from a dark red to a blue color as the wind caressed it.

Cyrus took a careful step back as sweat dropped down his forehead.

"You can either accept my demands…" Shadi spoke behind him, the sharpness of her voice cutting into him painfully, "or I can tell Midir here to turn this fortress of yours into a pile of molten metal and rock. Your choice."

He curled his fingers into fists and lowered his sight to one of the Pokeballs hanging from his belt. This particular one was different looking than the rest, with two red circles atop a pale violet color, and a small  _M_  in the middle. He studied his options as he felt the gaze of both Shadi and the beast on him. Could he…

He sighed. No, it would be foolish and unnecessarily dangerous to try to fight her, even with the Pokemon which resided inside that ball. He had no choice but to submit to her demands for now.

"I can give the order to everyone in Team Galactic, but that will not guarantee her safety," he spoke after what felt like a minute of silence. "I've come across her and her friend twice already, and just from looking at them I can tell they're impossibly naïve and determined."

Shadi shrugged, "Runs the family."

"She has made enemies of some of my grunts already," he continued, ignoring her words, "and if Mars finds out she's related to you… no power in this world will be able to save your sister from her."

The woman narrowed her eyes, and a dry, bitter smile formed on her face. The unrelenting pressure she'd been putting on the entire room banished, and for a single moment Cyrus thought he'd never seen someone that looked as tired as her.

"Don't you worry about Mars," she said, voice low and raspy. "Just make sure you get the message across to all your subordinates."

Cyrus shook his head, feeling the empty embers of frustration rising from his chest, "That's not my point. She will not stop coming after us, Shadi. I can't promise something won't happen to her."

She walked towards him and gave him a soft pat on his shoulder, eyes set on the Charizard still staring at them from outside the building.

"You're an intelligent man. I'm sure you can think of a way to stop her without physically harming her or her friend."

He swallowed and looked down at the Pokeball once more. He knit his eyebrows together as an idea formed on his mind.

"I might be able to think of something."

"Wonderful," Shadi's shoulders dropped, and so did the darkness that had been forming around them. "Glad we could come to an agreement."

Without even looking at him she walked towards the balcony and set foot on the handrail separating her from a fall to her death. The Charizard at the other side moved her head in what almost looked like a nod, and began flying lower until her back was inches away from the ledge.

"Wait."

Shadi looked back as she was trying to set foot on top of her Pokemon. Her face was obscured by the pale light of the new moon behind her, and wild locks of black hair danced around her. The green had returned to her eyes, and with them came back the tiredness of her expression. Cyrus furrowed his brow as he spoke.

"I hope you know that threatening me is in violation of our truce," he straightened up, hands behind his back. "I will accept your orders for now, but you will come to regret what you just did. Actions have consequences, Shadi."

The woman smiled, showing her ivory teeth, and he could almost see the underline of a shadow which didn't belong to her rising from her body.

"We'll see about that," she whispered into the wind just before jumping on the Charizard's back. "Take care, Cyrus."


	23. Act 2: Emotion

The four victorious trainers left Hearthome with their spirits high and their egos just a smidge bigger.

Despite Fantina's insistence they only stayed in the city for three days, mostly due to the woman's smothering personality and her inability to take a hint that no, none of them with the exception of Percy wanted to appear in commercials or contests with her.

Also smothering was the waves of excited young trainers which ran into them ever since their fight with the Gym leader, asking for photos, autographs and in one special case a date with Niss. Barry was pretty sure he'd never seen his friend turn as red as her coat before, nor stammering so much her speech was comparable to that of a stuttering Spinda.

As such she decided to leave less than an hour later, along with Barry and the experienced Percy and Reiko who promised they could accompany them all the way to Solaceon before heading toward Canalave.

Clouds of mist danced at the edge of their vision as they made their way through Route 209, the sun a pale blur of white in the sky. The air became drier and hotter as they kept walking north, to the point where Inyssa had to take off her scarf and tie it around her waist like a makeshift belt.

Unfortunately the weather wasn't as heated as the discussion the four trainers were locked into.

"Does that hat cut off the circulation to your head!?" Reiko threw her hands up in frustration. "What do you mean you don't like Lance?"

Inyssa narrowed her eyes, trying to decide whether to be offended at her comment or not, "I mean that I don't like Lance, I can't make it any simpler. In terms of tackiness he's even worse than Fantina."

Reiko closed her hands into fists, the muscles on her arm contracting, "He is… literally the greatest dragon trainer to ever live. And he's objectively hot, you cannot deny that."

"Yeah, I'm not into guys who cosplay as bondage vampires."

Barry and Percy exchanged an amused look as they heard their friend's banter, staying slightly behind them as to not get in the way of their righteous fangirl fury. Next to the older boy floated a tiny Pokemon with a round, friendly face and a thin, plant like body. She curled her hands around a blue flower that was bigger than her, and stared at Reiko with a nervous look as she tried to catch up to her.

"You're making Panacea nervous."

Reiko turned around with a scowl directed at Percy. At the sight of this the Floette scurried behind her trainer, trembling with fear.

"Well, what about you two then?" She pointed at the boys with a finger. "Who do you think is the best Champion of all time?"

"If your answer isn't Alder then you're wrong," whispered Inyssa.

Percy stroked his chin and closed his eyes, deep in thought. Barry in the meantime tilted his head from side to side, pouting and putting his hands behind his head.

"Steven is undoubtedly the most balanced Champion in terms of skill and style," the first replied after a few seconds. "He's the man I aspire to be like someday."

"I think Ethan's pretty cool," the latter shrugged. "He's got a skateboard and a fishing rod! And he beat eighteen Gym Leaders instead of just eight."

Reiko huffed as she shook her head, hands on her hips, "Steven is such a wet blanket though, and Ethan is a bit too rebellious for my taste. I don't want someone who's even more of a pain in the ass than I am."

"You know we're talking about how strong they are, right? Not what kind of boyfriend material they'd be," Inyssa shot her a disapproving look.

The discussion continued for a few minutes as the four trainers analyzed every metric they considered important for a Champion to have, while the silhouette of Solaceon grew in the distance.

Above them a large bird Pokemon flew, moving his long vulturine neck from side to side as his wide brown wings cast a shadow on top of the route. The Fearow's sharp eyes noticed something in the mist and dropped down with enough speed to break the sound barrier. He disappeared into the robust trees and only a few seconds later emerged again, a Magikarp trapped within his beak. Barry was the only one to notice it, and as subtly as possible he put himself behind Reiko, out of the way of her terrifying Pokemon.

He gulped as he looked away from it, and tried his best to distract himself by talking, "Uh… how about Red? Does he count as a Champion?"

 

* * *

 

 

The conversation come to a halt, and everyone's expression showed something different at the sound of it. A hint of a smile appeared on Reiko's face as her eyes brightened, and Percy simply looked down, brow furrowed.

Inyssa couldn't help but feel a shiver run down her spine. Red… just his name carried such an impressive weight. Not even her unconscious bias against Kanto could deter from the inspiration his image carried with it.

The boy of legend; the trainer of few words who dismantled a criminal organization and became Champion at the young age of eleven. Some considered him the greatest Pokemon master to ever exist, and it had been rumored that he had only lost one battle in his entire career.

She smiled to herself as the light of such a person shone on her mind, "Red… well, I don't think anyone here could deny that he's insanely strong, but wasn't he the Champion for like… literally five minutes?"

"He returned the title to Lance as soon as he claimed it," Percy nodded. "It was a very controversial decision at the time, especially right after the end of the war. Practically the entire region begged him to stay in the Indigo Plateau and represent them, but…"

Inyssa clicked her tongue, tasting the aftermath of the syrup on top of the pancakes she'd eaten earlier that morning, "But he decided to fuck off to the top of a mountain for like three years."

"Basically. They then offered the title to Blue who had also held it for about five minutes before Red arrived. He refused too, saying that he'd lost fair and square and his pride wouldn't allow him to. So instead he became a Gym Leader and Lance was stuck again being the Champion until Ethan arrived three years later."

They stayed silent for a few moments, both admiring Percy's ability to summarize such a loaded piece of history and thinking about the ramifications of Red's actions. Inyssa couldn't decide exactly how she felt about the fact he'd given up his title so quickly. On one hand it made sense for someone as quiet and reserved as Red, and it is true that he became a lot stronger due to his endless training at Mt Silver.

But at the same time, wasn't the title what she wanted most? Would she give it up in the same way if she had a chance to become even stronger? Was there even a point of training after becoming the Champion if that meant that you were above all others?

She was so concentrated on her own thoughts that she didn't notice the fact that Reiko hadn't spoken in a while, which surprised her when she heard her voice out of nowhere.

"I… actually met Red, once."

All eyes turned to her, and surprise was clear on Inyssa and Barry's faces, while Percy simply let out a small chuckle.

"She loves this story," he whispered.

Barry's eyes opened wide as his mouth turned into a small  _O,_ "You met Red!? Like, in person!? Oh my gosh that's so cool I can't even…" He started jumping in place. "How was it!?"

"Yeah, and how did someone like you run into the most famous trainer of all time?" Inyssa added.

A wistful look appeared on Reiko's eyes, "It happened ten years ago, in Saffron City. I ran into Red and Blue in the headquarters of Silph Co."

Inyssa narrowed her eyes, and only a few seconds later realization hit her. That had to be right around when…

"Wait, you mean  _that_  day?" She couldn't help but let her mouth hang open. "The attack on Silph Co.? The fall of Team Rocket? You were actually there?"

"Sure was," the redhead puffed her chest, smiling proudly. "Mom worked at the company, and the attack happened while I was visiting her so I got front seats when Team Rocket took over the place."

She began to account for what happened that day, and for a while it lined up perfectly with what Inyssa had learned about the incident when she was younger. After gathering intel and allies for months Team Rocket managed to take over the entire company, with the express purpose of stealing the Master Ball: a Pokeball which could catch any Pokemon without fail, no matter how strong they were.

Reiko told them with joviality how the Rocket grunts had thrown her and her mother into one of the rooms with a security door, locking it shut and trapping them for what seemed like an eternity. As the hours went by they heard whispers that Team Rocket's leader had managed to capture the president and was interrogating him that very moment. And with all communications down and the entire building sealed shut there didn't seem to be any way to alert the authorities about what was happening. The situation looked hopeless.

Reiko's smile grew bigger and she could even see a hint of wetness in her eyes, "That's when someone opened the door to where we were trapped. A young kid, barely older than me and with a belt full of Pokeballs and a Pikachu standing on his shoulder." She pressed a hand against her chest and let out a sigh. "He smiled and told me everything was going to be fine, that his friend Blue was already making his way towards the top of the building while he tried to free as many scientists as possible."

Inyssa didn't need to be told anything else; she knew very well what had happened afterwards. Both young trainers defeated an entire building full of Rocket grunts and even managed to take down their leader; the fearsome Giovanni. A day later the news spread throughout the entire world as everyone talked about the two prodigies and wondered to themselves what would they do afterwards. And then…

"The next time I saw him was a couple months later, in television," continued Reiko, still smiling. "The sun was barely out when my mom woke me up and told me to come to the living room. That's when I saw him."

"Two months…" Barry knit his eyebrows. "That must've been when he challenged the Elite four."

"Yep. By the time I got to the T.V he'd already beaten Lorelei and Bruno. I had my nose practically glued to the screen as I saw him beat both Agatha and Lance. And that's when he faced against Blue…"

Inyssa didn't realize just how much attention she was paying to Reiko's words. It was true that they'd only known each other for a short time but she'd never heard such a softness in her voice nor seen such a warm smile in her lips.

"It was the most amazing battle I have ever seen in my life. I was practically out of breath by the end of it," she recounted, eyes brightening. "That's the last time I saw him. I tried to run into him a few times since then but I couldn't find him anywhere. I would love to someday thank him for what he did that day and then challenge him to a battle. That's my dream."

A few seconds of silence passed until Percy spoke, "That… might be difficult. Rumors say he's on vacation with Blue in Alola, which is thousands of miles away."

Reiko shrugged, "I got time."

Inyssa stared forward contemplatively as she thought about her words. At her side Barry couldn't stop jumping in place as he assaulted the poor Reiko with a million questions about how Red looked like and how he acted.

It only took her a few moments to come up with the question she wanted to ask, "So… if you love Red so much why don't you choose him as your favorite Champion?"

The question seemed to catch her off guard, but by the smile she showed afterwards she figured the girl had heard that question before.

"I don't really see him as a Champion," she shrugged. "To me he's something much more than that."

Inyssa lowered her head as they got even closer to Solaceon, the small town now only a couple minutes away. She played back Reiko's answer inside her mind, trying to decipher just exactly what she meant by that.

"Something more than a Champion…"

She whispered low enough for only herself to listen, the words sounding so out of place and illogical she had trouble piecing them together inside her head.

There couldn't be such a thing, could be?

 

* * *

 

 

They hadn't taken more than a few steps into the city when the noise reached them. A loud, all encompassing cacophony of laughs, yells and general sounds of excitement and joviality mixed with fireworks.

Inyssa's eye twitched. That was not what she wanted to hear after escaping Hearthome.

The entrance to the town opened up to a wide street with plenty of trees and vegetation covering the sides and obscuring part of the houses up ahead. No feats of impressive architecture or tall buildings adorned the horizon as they walked forward, taking in the pleasant sunlight which made everything glisten. A few blocks ahead laid the source of all the commotion. The street took two sudden turns in opposite directions as it surrounded the biggest park Inyssa had ever seen. It stretched towards almost the edge of the horizon and seemed to serve as the core of the town itself.

Thin lines of cement curved themselves through the entirety of it and formed the paths at which sides lied what seemed to be a multitude of business stands and tables surrounded by young and old people alike. A white, perfectly decorated sign met them at the entrance of the park, its words forming a knot in Inyssa's stomach.

_Solaceon's Solstice Festival! Buy, play, win prizes and enjoy a beautiful day under the sunlight!_

Barry and Reiko's faces brightened simultaneously as they read the words, and both Inyssa and Percy noticed the change in their expressions immediately.

"No," both of them said simultaneously.

"It's a festival!" Barry complained, as if those three words were enough explanation. "Niss, when was the last time we even had a festival in Twinleaf!?"

"Uh… the pine-tree festival four years ago? The one where you tried to climb to the highest one and broke your arm?"

"Exactly! Where else am I gonna find fun like that?" he pointed at the waterfalls of people flowing from every corner of the park. "Come on, we gotta see it."

Percy pinched the bridge of his nose, "We've been walking for hours. The festival won't be gone if we rest in the Pokemon Center for a few…"

"I'm going in."

And with just those words Reiko passed them and headed towards the festival, her long red ponytail moving behind her. Percy closed his eyes and let out a sigh that contained all the exhaustion in the world, and followed suit. Barry was the next one, skipping excitedly as he ran behind his new friends.

Inyssa put a hand on her hip and shook her head, feeling the sweat and tiredness clinging to her body.

"Oh fuck it, it might be fun," she whispered to herself after a few seconds of consideration. "Should be a good opportunity to get my team to relax, too."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa studied the pamphlet she was given as they slithered their way through the sea of people flooding the place.

"Looks like the main attraction are all the games the town has set up," Percy read it aloud, his voice barely managing to reach them. "All the biggest gamemakers of Sinnoh gather here every year and offer rare prizes to those who can gain a lot of points."

"Du therg harb anrybrbh inthrbistg?" Reiko muttered through the cotton candy inside her mouth.

"I… What?" Percy narrowed his eyes. "Did you just insult my mother?"

She swallowed hard before speaking again, "I said, do they have anything interesting?"

"Oh. Well…" he almost buried his nose in the plastic paper, his eyebrows knitting together in concentration, "looks like they have a few rare items for trainers at the northeast extreme of the park. Battle helpers, evolutionary stones and even Pokemon eggs, courtesy of the local Daycare center."

That got Inyssa and Barry's attention, who looked expectantly towards Percy. The latter spoke, "I wanna go there."

"It could be interesting," Inyssa conceded. "We can at least try to get something out of… this place," she pronounced those last words with a bit of venom in them.

"What's wrong, hat girl? Don't like festivals?" Reiko spoke in front of her. "Too much happiness and fun for your taste?"

"Too loud more like it," she replied, gracefully ignoring the offense. "Lots of noise and color, reminds me of a clown. This city is the clown of Sinnoh."

It took them ten minutes to walk from one end of the park to the other, mostly due to rubbing elbows and crashing against people left and right. Inyssa would've never admitted it to the others but she was starting to feel more than a little uncomfortable and claustrophobic, her breathing becoming harsher with every step and sweat running down the edges of her hat.

Luckily the square of the park designated to trainers looked a tad more peaceful, with only a handful of teenagers and young adults crowding the stands. She even got the chance to buy a soda and some cheese bread without having to wait fifteen minutes, which worked wonders on raising her spirits.

She absentmindedly broke the bread in five pieces and gave four of them to her Pokemon who finally had enough space to come out and stretch their legs. Steven took hold of his favorite resting spot atop her hat while Kuro and Shadi ran ahead and looked excitedly at anything that grabbed their attention for more than a few seconds. But the worst of all was Bret, whose eyes were still glued to the floating flower Pokemon Percy carried with him. The usually outgoing and happy Roselia grabbed onto her leg as they walked, a deep green blush covering his cheeks.

Enma, as usual, was nowhere to be seen. As soon as she released him he'd ignored her words and gone wandering somewhere else, a shadow of discomfort over his eyes and his flame burning a dark red. And Hao didn't even consider the option of coming out, in fact she hadn't seen him at all since her fight with Fantina, which she considered odd.

With a low sigh and a scratch of her head she decided she'd deal with those two later. Least she could do right now was try to have fun.

"Look, they even have an obstacle course and and a Pokemon race!" Reiko shouted as her gaze moved like lightning from one stand to another. "Oh, do you think there's a wrestling game? Please tell me there's a wrestling game."

"For the sake of everyone in this park let's hope not," Percy answered, hands on his pockets.

Inyssa made a mental checklist of everything she came across as Barry blabbered on about games and prizes and such. Go karts? No, both her and her Pokemon would look stupid using those. Throwing balls? Too simple, and her aim was abysmal. Hundred meter dash? She was pretty sure her body would fucking explode before it could run that much.

Her eyes caught a glimpse of black and white squares, and her walking came to a halt as she turned towards it.

"Is that…"

Her lips curled upwards as she laid eyes on one of the smallest attractions, which consisted of three small tables with two chairs opposite of each other, and a beautiful chess board on top of each. The dark wood pieces were delicately ornated with different patterns and each one seemed to be made by hand.

She didn't even notice her feet walking her toward one of the tables, nor the longing and somewhat eager look she gave the board she came across first.

"Hello? Earth to Niss!"

Barry's face made her jump as it appeared in front of her.

She crossed her arms and tried to look casual, "I think I'll try this one."

"Me too," Percy said, his eyes as focused on the pieces as hers were a few seconds ago.

Both trainers locked eyes, and if she didn't know any better she would've sworn she saw sparks clashing between them. A wide grin formed on her face.

"Up for a match, fancy boy?"

His expression turned downright sinister as he narrowed his eyes at her. "Sure, sounds fun."

While they both tried to make each other back off with their gaze alone, Reiko walked behind Barry and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Well, while you two nerds enjoy you passionate nerd fight, me and Barry will go have some real fun."

"Are we!?" Barry turned towards the girl with eyes shining, a huge smile on his face. "Come on, we gotta try the shooting range!"

The young lady at the booth kindly explained to them how this particular game of chess worked. Most of the same rules applied, but the main twist was that each contender could choose one of their pieces and give it a special trait. Said piece would be able to move twice per turn, but its second move would be restricted to one square in every direction, just like that of the king.

Each player would also have to wear a funny hat shaped like the piece they chose for the entire match, which was the only part of the whole ordeal she didn't like. But still, she decided to swallow her pride for this rare chance to rub victory in Percy's smug face.

"This game is supposed to emulate the ever changing conditions in a Pokemon fight," the owner explained with the tone of a teacher, "and as a reward, the prize for the winner will be a beautiful Shiny Stone, recently mined from Oreburgh!"

That last part certainly got their attention. Both trainers turned their heads to one of their Pokemon, Inyssa to Bret and Percy to Panacea. They needed that Shiny Stone if they ever wanted them to evolve again.

"That stone is mine," Inyssa whispered, voice full of menace. "I choose my queen as my special piece."

"I choose my knight."

Percy grabbed the berret shaped like a horse and put it above his head. He then looked at Inyssa and expected her to take off her usual hat to put on the new one. Instead she grabbed her Starly with one hand, put the new hat on top of the old one and then placed the flying Pokemon on top of both of them.

He stared at her in befuddlement, his expression priceless.

 

* * *

 

 

"How much for the Damp Rock over there?"

Barry stood behind Reiko as she interrogated the owner of one of the games. She'd put both hands on the counter and was leaning forward, eyebrows knit together. Above her stood a sign that read:  _Shooting Range! Win Battle Items from all around the world!_

The dark skinned man at the other side of the table tipped his hat up and gave the girl a coy smile, "A Kantonian, eh? We don't get many of you folks 'round here."

Reiko tried to form a polite smile, "Yeah, well…"

"You folks are always pretty scary," the man continued. "But still, I doubt you'll be able to beat my game."

Reiko's smile froze, and her expression turned dark, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing. The Damp Rock is fifty points."

The look she gave the man sent a shiver down Barry's spine. Without breaking eye contact she took a single twenty bill from her pocket and slapped it on his hand, her lips curling into a devious smile.

He couldn't blame her for reacting that way. He remembered all the times he'd heard people say that those from Kanto were violent and impulsive, how it turned into a pretty ugly stereotype that had lingered for a long time after the war. How it had been thrown around by the military as propaganda, and how those families who were adamant about what they wrongly considered  _patriotism_  had spread it around like wildfire.

"Barry, I'm about to teach both of you a lesson," Reiko told him as she held one of her Pokeballs. "Look closely."

Light exploded from the ball as a tall, blue figure materialized in front of her. Nakuru the Golduck kneeled slightly with one leg and extended both arms to the side, flexing as he shot everyone around a coy smile.

The Pokédex in his pocket came to life with a beep:

_Golduck: The Swimmer Pokemon - Water Type. Its aerodynamic fins and powerful legs allow it to swim faster than any other creature. It is able to use powerful psychic energy when the gem on its forehead starts glowing._

"Alright showoff, let's try to get your skills on the same level as your ego," Reiko pointed towards the colorful targets hanging from the wall in the back. "Hit those and I'll get you a cool gift."

The Golduck gave her a thumbs up. The man at the other side of the counter rolled his eyes and smiled as he went to the back and pushed a button, bringing the game to life and making the targets move wildly in all directions.

To say that Reiko completely obliterated it would've been putting it lightly. Nakuru shot torrent after torrent of water which cut each target by the exact middle. Barry couldn't help but feel amused as he saw the man's shoulders drop and his expression turn to one of disbelief.

But there was something strange about Nakuru's attacks, something that Barry first thought was simply his eyes playing tricks on him. The streams of water seemed to be curving slightly as they approached the targets, though that could've been explained as a visual effect caused by the movement of the cardboard cutouts. However by the fourth and fifth time it was unmistakable.

Reiko took a look at him and smiled, "You noticed already? You have good eyes."

"How is he doing that? It kinda looks like…"

"Like the trajectory changes? That's because it does." She crossed her arms. "Nakuru is using both Water Gun and Psychic."

He opened his eyes wide as he felt a spark of excitement run through him, "What!? Really? How is he…"

"Remember what we did at the end of the trial in that tower?" She cut him off. "That combined attack? It's kind of like that."

"Yeah I… I mean, I understand the idea." He scratched his head, confused. "But how can he use two attacks at the same time?"

Reiko shrugged, "Lots of practice. Most Pokemon have the potential to use more than one attack at once, as long as they're compatible and require different parts of the body. I learned that from Misty, the Gym Leader of Cerulean City."

He stood speechless as thousands of possibilities raced through his head. The idea that a Pokemon could do more than just shoot one attack after the other… it seemed obvious in hindsight, but it was a huge discovery.

"I gotta tell Niss," he whispered to himself.

The game ended then, and with sweat dropping from his face the Golduck put both hands on his hips and laughed, which produced something akin to the sound of a cicada underwater. At the other side of the counter the man stood still, eyes wide in shock.

"Now, I'm sure you think we Kantonians aren't very good at math either," she said with an unmistakeable smug tone as her hand rested on the counter. "But that sure seems like a hundred points to me. I think I'll take both the Damp Rock and that Focus Sash, thank you very much."

With a scowl the man dropped both prizes on the table, avoiding the girl's gaze.

"See? I even got a nice gift for Percy," she said as the red and yellow sash spun in her fingers. "I knew coming here was a good idea."

An idea formed itself in Barry's mind then, and he couldn't help but shake as he grabbed his starter's Pokeball from his belt.

"I wanna try it too," he declared, his voice booming. "That Choice Scarf is mine."

 

* * *

 

 

The board never lied.

Percy had learned that the second time he'd played chess against his teacher. The first had been a catastrophic defeat, with the boy barely managing to take out two of her pieces before succumbing to the older woman's expertise. He'd hung his head down then, and whispered the words which to this day still made him laugh.

_I don't like this game._

He could still picture the woman's amused look when he said that. She insisted they at least play a second game, just to humor her. He accepted because his parents had already paid an hour of her time, and he really didn't have anything better to do. Besides, she'd been the only adult he'd met at that point in his life that didn't call him by his dead name, so giving her that small satisfaction seemed like the least he could do.

So play again they did, and the change from game to game was like that of day and night.

His teacher had been holding back. That time she carved a bloody path through the board so ruthlessly and methodically that the boy was left completely speechless. Not a single piece did he manage to take from her, and not a single move he made which didn't end up furthering her strategy. The way she moved her pieces, the complete lack of doubt as she poured her heart into the board, the terrifying cold of her eyes as she annihilated the boy sitting across her… Percy had never seen something so beautiful.

_Teach me to do that. Please._

She smiled then, as if she'd been expecting to hear that. No, as if she couldn't picture a world in which he wouldn't have said that. She accepted his offer, and what followed were five long years of training in which she made sure she imparted every single piece of knowledge about chess she'd been able to gather to him.

The most important of those rules being the first she taught him. The board never lied.

It was still as true as the day he'd learned it, he thought as his eyes set on the opponent across him. Inyssa leaned forward into the board, one hand hovering above her pieces and the other holding on strongly to the edges of the table. Intense was the first word which came to him as he studied her, as he read her style of play like an open book.

She hesitated for a moment, and then moved her bishop closer to his queen. Still trying to trap her, still trying to take out what she considered to be his strongest piece. And it would've been a good play too, if he didn't have that special knight.

A tad careless, but she'd managed to avoid the consequences of it so far by forcing him to sacrifice some of his pieces to protect the stronger ones. He was at a disadvantage in that regard, although he still maintained better positioning.

He moved his queen out of the way, giving her free reign to take one of his rooks. Inyssa shook her head slightly and let out a sound halfway through a snort and an offended growl.

"Of course," she whispered.

She was proud as well, but that was something one could learn by just looking at her. No, her movements on the board revealed much more than that. Things hidden and whisper thin, things that she would never tell anyone. Couldn't tell anyone.

He suspected it when he saw her fight with Fantina, but now it was clear; her style of play was contradictory. She moved her pieces with something akin to both anger and determination, but not quite either of them. It was as if someone were holding a gun to her head and telling her to give it her all. Anxiety and panic bubbled just below her surface, ready to explode at a moment's notice.

But at the same time she tried her best to protect her pieces, every single one of them. No matter what the situation was she sent her queen first to attack and supported her with everything else, scurrying around the board and trying her best not to lose any of them.

Such clash of completely different strategies was the only reason Percy hadn't won yet. He was having trouble understanding how she operated.

In a deep, deep part of her Inyssa was afraid, he could tell that much. But the reason for it remained dark to him, and it bothered him to no end. It had been the same back then, when she grabbed that last Pokeball of hers with shaking hands and revealed that strange Pokemon. He expected her to lose back then, expected the ghost Pokemon to disobey her because that made sense, and then it hadn't. Inyssa asked him for help and promised him something, and then he fought for her.

He could honestly not believe his eyes. A ghost Pokemon willingly helping a rookie trainer. It was as if reason had taken a day off, and Percy would be lying if he said it wasn't part of the reason he'd challenged her to a chess match for.

After a few seconds of consideration, he finally spoke.

"There's something I've been meaning to ask you."

Inyssa barely lifted her head as she whispered a response back, "Aren't you supposed to be focusing on the match?"

"I'm good at multitasking," he shrugged. "If you answer my question I'll give you a chess tip after I win, since you certainly seem to need it."

She shot him a murderous look, somewhat watered down by her intense concentration.

"Shoot."

He made his move first and asked second, as to have a bigger impact. Mind games, his teacher would've called it.

"Why do you want to be the Champion?"

The rhythm that had dictated every one of Inyssa's moves came to a halt there, as her fingers froze over one of her bishops. She looked up to him, and opened her mouth to speak. Her lower lip trembled.

"The Champion is the best trainer in the region," was her simple answer, "and that's me. It only feels appropriate to make it official."

Percy sighed. He should've known he wouldn't get an answer so easily.

He needed to try harder.

 

* * *

 

 

"Come on Pedri, you can do it!"

Barry put both hands around his mouth and shouted encouragement to his Prinplup, who was in the difficult process of trying to balance plates with his fins alone. The proud Pokemon stared daggers at his trainer as he plotted his revenge for later. Maybe he'd fire a Water Gun on top of his pancakes next time he bought some. That'd teach him.

Next to him was Reiko's Scyther, who was having similar problems balancing the plates with his lack of fingers. He seemed offended that his trainer would put him in such a humiliating position, so they had that in common at least.

They lost after a few seconds, and both trainers were forced to leave the game once they realized there was no chance of winning.

"Man, we were so close that last time," Barry pouted, hands on his pockets. "I really wanted that puffin case."

Reiko gave him a couple pats on the back, "It's okay kiddo, can't win them all. Besides, you already got that cool scarf."

He glanced down at the piece of blue and white cloth tied around his arm. The owner of the shooting gallery had explained that it was a special scarf made from refined Persian hair. It had the strange property of making Pokemon faster and more limber if they had it on, which sounded incredibly useful.

Still, he didn't deserve such a cool thing.

"I kinda got this one for Niss," he admitted, rubbing the tip of the scarf with his fingers. He couldn't believe how soft it felt.

"I see…"

Reiko got closer suddenly. She leaned her head down and squinted, as if trying to study Barry's expression. The boy stopped and took a step back, looking at the sides nervously. Had he said something…?

Her lips curled into a sinister smile, "So… how long since you two… you know?"

Barry blinked a few times, confused. Since they… what? What was she talking about?

"You know," she elaborated. "Is this an anniversary thing? How long have you two been a thing?"

Realization hit him then. She thought… Reiko thought he and Niss…

"W-wha...!?" he put both arms forward, palms up. "That's not it! We're not… that's not why I got her this!"

Reiko could barely maintain her serious expression for a few seconds before breaking into a fit of laughter. She crossed her arms over her stomach and had to lean in on a lamp post. He heard his Prinplup snicker in amusement behind him.

"Reiko!" He stomped the ground, heat rising to his face. "Reiko, that's not funny!"

"Oh, it is. Trust me." She wiped a tear off her eyes, still giggling. "I can't believe… oh man, I'm usually so spot on about this kinda stuff."

Barry pointed his finger at her, an accusing look on his face, "W-well, what about you!? You got a gift for Percy too!"

Reiko let out another giggle, and tilted her head in confusion, "I mean… yeah? Why do you think I did it?"

Realization hit him again, this time with the force of a hammer. Pedri couldn't help but laugh at the face his trainer made.

"What!?" He yelled, startling the people around him. "Are you two dating!?"

"And Barry finally crosses the finish line!" Reiko threw her arms to the sky, "unfortunately all the other contenders died of old age waiting for him to get there."

"B-but you don't act like a couple!" he protested, his worldview falling to pieces around him. "Aren't you supposed to like… be super nice and cuddly and stuff when you're with someone?"

Reiko's smile froze a bit, and then slowly died as she realized she was dealing with a seventeen year old who'd probably never dated anyone. Her mocking expression was replaced with a warm smile.

"Oh Barry…" she shook her head, hands on her hips. "I mean, sometimes that happens, but the way you treat someone doesn't have to change that much when you're in a relationship. Dating someone is like being friends with them but… different," she explained, trying to choose her words carefully. "But… not too different. Understand?"

"I… is that true? Is that how it works?"

Barry let himself fall against his Pokemon, who made no effort to try and hold him. Instead he gave him a couple of reluctant pats on the head. Reiko kneeled in front of the boy with a smile and did the same.

"Don't believe everything you see on T.V, kiddo," she said. "And don't worry about it too much, I'm sure she'll love your gift no matter what your intention was."

He looked down at the piece of cloth on his arm, and furrowed his brow. Now that he knew the truth he wasn't sure if the gesture had been entirely platonic to begin with.

"You think so?"

She gave him a thumbs up, "Yeah! Trust me, that girl may act like an ice queen but she loves cute stuff. I know her type."

Barry couldn't help but smile at Reiko's diagnosis. It couldn't have been more spot on.

"Now…" she gave him another yank up, still smiling. "Let's go get you a gift for yourself! Those Pokemon races look pretty fun, so we should try there first."

 

* * *

 

 

"That's not the real reason, is it?"

Inyssa did her best to ignore the heat traveling through her body as she concentrated on the game. What the hell was the guy's problem? And why had he become so interested in her all of a sudden?

"Maybe it is, maybe it's not," she shrugged. "Why do you care?"

"I don't. We barely know each other, but the way you play and the way you battle are equally interesting, and I'd like to know what's behind both those things."

His answer was enough to give her pause. She had to admit, the boy's honesty was refreshing, even if it didn't make her any less angry towards the situation.

"Well, what about you?" she tried to change the subject. "No offense but you don't look like the ambitious type. Why are you taking the League challenge?"

Now it was his turn to freeze. It happened fast, almost enough to make it seem like he was just deliberating about his next move, but Inyssa knew better.

"Family reasons."

She couldn't help but laugh at his response, "Ain't that typical."

That's as far as the conversation went. Inyssa lowered her head as most of her mind focused on the task at hand, and the other part that remained wouldn't stop bugging her about Percy.

_Should I ask him about his family? Would it be the right thing to do?_

She definitely had the advantage in pieces, having lost almost none despite his offensive style. But he still managed to escape almost every attack she sent towards his side of the board, and she was pretty sure he was planning something.

_Does he want me to ask him?_

He was keeping both his bishops at opposite sides, making sure she couldn't make use of castling. He protected them well too, surrounding the pieces with his queen and remaining rook while his knight jumped into the offensive. She needed to break through, somehow.

_Do I even care? He just said he doesn't._

She could try attacking from the flank, but that would mean leaving her right side open, which had lost a couple pawns already. No, she needed to set up a long term plan if she wanted any chance to break down his defenses.

"You want to ask me about it," Percy spoke out of nowhere, eyes still set on the board, "but you're not sure if it would be appropriate."

Her train of thought stopped on its tracks, and she gave the boy a look which carried more than a few curses with it.

_You think you're so clever, don't you?_

"Mostly I don't want to do the same afterwards," she lied. "If we start sharing family stories I might have to tell you mine and then you'll say: 'Your horrible personality finally makes sense!'"

Percy laughed. An honest, high pitched laugh that even made him snort. The change the laugh made on his face was enough to actually startle Inyssa.

"That might just be the case," he admitted.

She tried her best to hide her own smile.

"Well, there you have it. Feel free to share, fancy boy, but don't expect me to do the same."

His response came almost a minute later, when she figured he wouldn't be humoring her any longer. She didn't want to admit she was glad to be wrong.

"I come from a family of distinguished trainers," he explained. "All of them have at the very least gotten through Victory Road at some point. Naturally I am expected to do the same."

She waited for more words, but they didn't come. That had been… a lot simpler than she expected.

"But do you want to do it or not?" she questioned him after a long silence.

He clicked his tongue before answering, "In a way, yes. I have my pride as a trainer, and I enjoy battling. I'm still trying to figure out what I really want out of this journey."

She couldn't help but feel some disdain towards his words. Maybe she just didn't like people who didn't know what to do of their lives in principle. Maybe it just reminded her of herself when she was younger.

"Why here, though? Why Sinnoh and not your own region?"

His fingers danced over his remaining rook as he stared at nothing, "Kalos is… in a complicated state right now. We've gone through five Champions in the past two years, and my father deemed the League to be too weak for me."

She didn't need to be psychic to understand. A wave of anger passed over her as she couldn't help but feel offended for Percy.

"So when he heard that our Champion hasn't lost in twelve years…" she continued, "he decided to send you here."

The boy gave another, weak shrug as he kept moving the pieces. His shoulders were low and his eyes had lost the little brightness they had in them. Inyssa felt a knot forming in her stomach.

"He doesn't expect me to become the Champion, I know that much. He wants me to at least beat one of the Elite Four so I don't bring shame to my name," his words were coated in a thin poison that made Inyssa feel a lot worse than she expected to. "Maybe I  _will_  beat the Champion, just to spite him. He was never able to, after all."

To try and get better as a response to those who didn't believe in you… Inyssa knew very well how that felt. She bit her lip as she moved her queen to take his remaining rook.

"That sounds great," she spoke sincerely. "I'm willing to let you be the third strongest after me and Barry. That should be good enough for you to rub on your dad's face, right?"

Percy showed her the first warm smile he'd seen on his lips, along with a non verbal thanks she didn't fail to pick up on.

He then moved his queen to a position just between both his bishops, and his plan finally came together in Inyssa's head. A three pronged attack which aimed to neutralize all her defensive pieces while keeping her own queen trapped.

But she wouldn't be bested so easily. By using his remaining pieces for the offensive he'd let his impenetrable defense down, and his left side was now open. Without hesitation she moved her rook to take the pawn just two squares away from his king. One more move and she'd have him trapped.

"You lasted a lot longer than I expected."

The words were enough to break her concentration, and she looked up to ask what he meant by that. A devious smile formed across his face as he put one finger over his knight.

"But this wasn't going to end any other way."

He moved the piece to the exact center of the board, and all of Inyssa's plans came crashing down around her.

The positioning was nothing short of perfect. While she'd been concentrating too much on his defense she didn't realize that he'd been planning a devastating offense at the same time. From that place the knight could know have access to almost every part of the board thanks to the support of both bishops and the queen. And worst of all both her best pieces were now trapped behind enemy lines.

"When did you…?" She whispered, eyes opened wide.

"You put too much trust in your queen and tried to both protect your weaker pieces and keep them out of trouble. Thanks to that I could set up something like this." His eyes met hers, and Inyssa's lip trembled. "There you have your chess tip. Diversify. Don't be afraid to sacrifice in order to get an advantage."

She grit her teeth in frustration and silently swore to herself that she would prove him wrong.

The match lasted only four more moves. Percy annihilated her defenses and trapped her king before she could even reposition her queen back to her side of the board. Inyssa was pretty sure she would've felt less insulted if he simply grabbed the board and threw it in her face.

With all said and done Percy picked up his prize as she kept sitting in place, silently grumbling and wondering exactly where she'd made a mistake.

"Don't think too much about it," he told her when he came back from the counter. "Here, catch."

She barely had time to react as he threw the stone at her face. With clumsy fingers and a spike of anxiety she managed to catch it just before it reached the ground. The stone was cold and had a texture similar to glass, but it glowed with a beautiful yellow that could've functioned as a light source on its own.

"I don't like handouts," she scowled at him.

"You need it more than I do. Consider it a prize for giving me an enjoyable match."

She studied his face for a few seconds before responding, "Well… but I'll pay it back to you somehow. I don't like owing things to people."

"I'm sure you don't," he put the strap of his backpack over his shoulder as he walked towards her and gave her a pat on the back. "Come on, we should find Barry and Reiko before they set the entire place on fire."

 

* * *

 

 

The rest of the day transpired with relative peace. They ran into their friends after ten minutes of searching, and Inyssa was surprised with the image of both Barry having a Pokemon egg on his hands and a white and blue scarf which he gave her as a gift.

He blushed too when he did it, which made Inyssa feel like someone was playing drums inside her ribcage.

She then proceeded to give the Choice Scarf to Shadi, who shed tears of happiness at the sight of her beautiful gift. She would've lied if she said her first option hadn't been Enma, but considering his attitude that past week she didn't think he deserved such a cool gift.

And just like that the day came to an end, and all four of them unanimously decided to leave the city the next day. They'd been lucky they even came across the festival, and without it the only thing the town had to offer was a strange tunnel full of mysterious caves which Inyssa was so not interested in.

With the light of a new day also came the time for goodbyes, as temporary as they were. Both Percy and Reiko had already beaten the leader of Veilstone, so they had no need to go back. Instead they chose their next target to be the steel type Gym at Canalave City.

"We'll take a small detour towards Celestic Town and then head southwest with our flying Pokemon," explained Percy, mapping their route on his Pokétch.

"What Gym are you kids gonna tackle next?" Reiko asked excitedly. "After Veilstone, of course."

She'd been thinking about it for a few days now. She wanted to leave Sunnyshore for last, since she'd heard its leader was as strong as an Elite Four member and wanted to battle him at his full strength. And she didn't really feel like walking all the way north through the cold towards Snowpoint, so that only left her two options. One of which was closer.

"Sounds good!" Reiko gave them a thumbs up after her answer, "then we'll meet in Pastoria. Make sure to keep us updated on your journey, and don't you dare lose against Veilstone's Gym Leader."

"Yes mom," both Barry and Inyssa replied with a sly smile.

They waved goodbye as the older trainers disappeared into the western paths of the Route, and after what Inyssa considered an eternity she was finally left alone with Barry again.

Not that she'd admit she missed that. Never in a million years.

"Um… Niss?"

The boy tugged at her sleeve weakly, a weak blush covering his cheeks. One of his arms was still around the white Pokemon egg covered in red and blue triangles.

"What is it?"

"Did you know…" he whispered while avoiding her gaze, "...did you know that Percy and Reiko are dating?"

The question caught her off guard. She raised an eyebrow in confusion and tilted her head to the side.

"Yeah, obviously," was her response. "Anyone with a pair of eyes could've told you that."

"O-oh."


	24. The Storm

Shame turned solid inside Metchi's throat as she pointed the barrel of the gun at the Galactic grunt in front of her.

She was young. Too young, almost as much as her when she first joined. Her curly, frizzy locks covered a soft face which showed a whole bunch of fear. A bit of defiance and anger too, although not enough to make her move or talk or do anything besides stare at the deadly weapon pointed directly at her forehead.

Smart. At least that was a clear difference between them.

_"This is a perfect chance, Metchi."_

Azelf's voice boomed in her mind, making her shake her head in frustration as if that'd get rid of it. If only it were that easy.

 _I just need to take her uniform_ , she thought back,  _nothing more._

She heard a sigh that didn't belong to her nor the young girl whose back was against the wall.

_"You need to practice sooner or later. My power is too useful for you to choose not to use it."_

Metchi didn't bother with a response. Couldn't. Azelf was absolutely right and she'd known since the moment it presented the possibility to her.

That didn't mean she'd be happy about it. Au fucking contraire, it just meant her ego and what remained of her moral compass refused to even acknowledge the legendary Pokemon's words until she had no choice but to listen.

And it seemed like the  _No Choice_  moment had come. Knocked at her door all polite like and punched her in the stomach as soon as she opened it.

_Fine, I'll do it. But I still fucking hate you._

_"I am aware."_

She lowered the gun and tucked it safely inside one of the pockets of her hoodie. Firing it wasn't an option anyway, not in the middle of the streets of Solaceon right after everyone had gone to sleep.

The girl's eyes narrowed, "W-what are you doing? I thought…"

" _Quiet."_

She summoned that familiar fire behind her eyes and spoke the word with a strength which didn't belong to her. Her and Azelf's voice fell on top of the Galactic grunt, shaking her to her core and freezing her entire body as a wave of energy passed through her. The girl tried to open her mouth, tried to say anything back but she was not able to.

Metchi dared not to blink, afraid it would break the spell she'd just cast on the poor girl. She was also mindful of the possibility of not being able to summon the power again if she had to try a second time. She felt it not only behind her eyes but cursing through her veins, filling the entirety of her body like weightless clothing made of fire.

_So this is…_

She curled her fingers into fists and breathed deep, savoring the light brimming inside her. Azelf had been right as usual: her previous uses of their power were nothing compared to this. Blasts of energy, telekinesis, teleportation… all of that could be accomplished by any regular psychic Pokemon.

But this was different, this was something only a legend could do.

Metchi looked down to the poor girl and she saw it. The embers of her willpower burned weakly inside her chest, as if they were trying to fight back against a hurricane.

Perhaps they were.

She only needed to weaken that fire. Not snuff it out. No, that was something only the real Azelf in possession of its body would be capable of. To completely erase someone's will, forever…

The possibility was terrifying, and yet here she was tampering with it. At least with her it would only be temporary. Or at least that was what she'd been told.

She opened her mouth to issue another command, " _You will do what I say, and in return I won't kill you. Nod if you understand."_

Her will shook and faltered against her words. For a few moments she seemed to resist, and anger flared behind those honey eyes of hers. But such rebellion was short lived as Metchi's newfound power took hold of her, forcing her to drop her shoulders and nod weakly.

She bit her lip, wetness forming on her eyes. She'd never hated herself more.

" _You will fall asleep when I flick my fingers,"_  she continued, raising one hand,  _"and once you wake up you won't tell anyone what happened. If you do I will come for you and everyone you love. Do you understand?"_

Another nod, this time as slow and methodical as that of a machine. The girl's eyes were dull and colorless.

Metchi tried to flick her fingers twice, and both times she failed. Her hands were shaking. Something started to beat painfully in her ribcage and turned her insides sour. Third time was the charm though, and when she finally produced the desired sound the Galactic grunt's eyes closed, and she fell unconscious against the cold cement wall behind her.

That feeling of clarity and power evaporated, leaving disgust and shame to fill her instead. She stood still for almost a minute, until Azelf spoke again.

_"That was a good attempt. If you continue practicing you'll master the Monarch's Eyes in no time."_

She didn't bother saying anything back. Didn't bother throwing its way the pile of insults and horrible things she wanted to say. She simply shrugged and knelt to grab the girl by her shoulders.

"Let's just get her fucking uniform," she growled, voice devoid of strength. "The faster we get this over with the better."

 

* * *

 

 

Cold hit them like a train as soon as they reached Route 215. A sharp cold, the kind which easily penetrated cloth and skin, leaving Inyssa a shaking mess with a sore throat and a complete lack of faith in cheap overcoats.

She figured it was partly due to Mt Coronet standing high enough at their left to block the sun, and partly because the universe hated her and couldn't give her two sunny, pleasant days in a row.

That snippety part of her which she hated with a passion suggested she should stay close to Barry as they walked, as to share body warmth. She kindly took the suggestion and saved it in the  _Go Fuck Yourself_  folder inside her head.

She took a side glance at the boy through the thin slit between her raised scarf and hat where her eyes were, and considered herself fortunate the white cloth currently covered her cheeks. She couldn't help but notice her friend had taken off his jacket and was using it as a makeshift blanket for the egg he was holding.

"Sure you don't want me to hold it for a bit?" She offered, voice shaking from the cold. "It's clearly sapping all your body warmth."

Barry's teeth chattered as he tried to form a smile with his dry lips, "I-it's fine, I can take care of it! If old timey people could get through the cold without coats and heaters then so can I!"

"Old timey people also had a lower life expectancy. Probably because they all died of hypothermia."

He shook his head disapprovingly, "Always so negative. Where's your sense of adventure, Niss?"

She rolled her eyes and dug her hands deep into her pockets.

Fear crept up on her as she walked, flying around her ears like a bothersome mosquito. She knew very well how sturdy Barry was. Hell, she'd seen him survive more falls than she could count, but that didn't change the fact that he was still human. He could easily catch a bad cold if the route happened to be just a bit too long.

She clenched her teeth and pushed her shyness down, letting it bubble just below surface where it wouldn't bother her.

"Here, catch."

Barry looked surprised as a long, white scarf flew towards him and landed on top of his head.

"Agh! Wh-what…"

Inyssa lowered her head, "Just use it, okay? At least protect your neck from the cold so you don't catch something ugly."

She felt his eyes on her. Staring. Probably judging too.

"Thanks! I promise I'll take care of it," Barry nodded as he tied the thing around him. "Wow, it's so cozy! And soft..."

"Only quality stuff for me," she smiled through the pain of her dry lips. "Made of Mareep's wool. Try not to mess it up."

"Blah blah blah," he formed a mouth with his left hand and mimicked someone talking with it. "Look at me, I'm Niss and I only drink water if it's from a waterfall made of puppies and gold."

She tried to contain a smile, "Wouldn't a waterfall made of gold make the water toxic?"

He let out a sigh as he rolled his eyes, "I wasn't trying to be literal, Niss! Besides…"

Barry's body flinched and he threw his head back as a drop of water fell on his nose.

_Oh no._

They looked up simultaneously to a grey sky, which slowly got darker in the direction they were headed to. Through the thick mist surrounding them they noticed a heavy sheet of rain approaching, the sound of the endless drops dancing at the edge of their hearing.

Both kids stood frozen, panic filling them as the exact same thought appeared in their heads.

"So…" she spoke after a few seconds, "I'm guessing you didn't put an umbrella in your bag."

A weak shake of his head was answer enough.

She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers, "Great. Just what I fucking needed."

 

* * *

 

 

They barely managed to find a shelter before the rain caught up to them. A few minutes right from the road stood a wide, abandoned bridge which was built over high terrain, so unless the entire route were to get flooded they would be safe for the time being.

Inyssa let herself fall against one of the concrete pillars, making sure the floor under her was as clean as possible. Next to her Barry leaned into the egg his arms were wrapped around. His mouth and neck were covered by her scarf, having only his sharp nose visible through its folds.

"We can't stay here until the rain stops," she argued, fingers curled into fists. "That could take hours."

"Most sensible trainers have umbrellas for this kinda stuff," Barry replied, shoulders shaking.

"I think by now it's clear that we're anything but sensible trainers."

He raised his head lightly to protest, but stopped himself, "Y-yeah. Fair enough."

They curled up even more as the sound of rain and thunder roared louder with every minute that went by.

"You could tell Enma to make a fire," he offered. "I have some old marshmallows in my bag. We could pretend we're camping and roast them."

She let out a bitter laugh before shaking her head, "Yeah, I'm sure he'll be ecstatic to help me. Will do a twirl and dance to entertain us, too."

Barry scowled at his friend, barely hiding his irritation below surface. Maybe that'd come out a bit more mean spirited than she wanted to.

"You can't both be angry at each other forever. Eventually you'll have to make up."

She saved to herself the  _What the hell do you know_? and the  _Don't tell me how to train my Pokemon_. Threw them in a safe inside her mind and locked them shut because the last thing she needed was to make Barry hate her too.

Instead she buried her face between her knees and let out a deep sigh.

She couldn't bring herself to deny it, she had a problem when it came to Enma. After the trial at the Lost Tower their relationship had gone from one of mutual, reluctant respect to one of pure animosity. The Monferno couldn't even look at her for more than a second before shooting her a sour look.

She'd been looking for a way to fix that for a while now. But between her travels and everything else going on she just had no time.

Her eyes opened wide as a gasp got caught in her throat.

Time. She raised her head and looked around to the torrent of water falling from the sky. If she had anything now it was time, at least while they uselessly waited for the storm to subside. Something WHICH could easily take a couple hours if not more.

"Barry…"

He opened his eyes lazily and looked in the direction Inyssa was pointing.

"Look, there." her eyes were set on a group of trees that could barely be considered a forest, a couple of minutes from where they were. "Look how thick those leaves are. Do you think they can stop the rain?"

He furrowed his brow before replying, "I mean… yeah, I guess. But we already have this neat bridge, why would we need to go there?"

A wave of excitement washed over her as she got up, strongly holding Enma's Pokeball with one hand.

She had a lot of time to kill. The least she could do was start killing it.

"Hold the fort. I'll be back in less than an hour."

 

* * *

 

 

The scent of wet grass and mud was the only thing she could smell by the time she arrived at an acceptable location. She could hear the loud beating of her heart in her ears, and she needed a full minute for her breathing to return to normal.

_I really need to get in better shape. Maybe I should join Barry on his morning jogs._

Around her were a thick row of identical trees, probably planted there some time ago as a way to combat the rain from flooding the nearby river. The ground stood a bit more firm than in the outskirts of the route thanks to the blanket of leaves above her, going up toward one of the lower edges of Mt Coronet.

She rolled Enma's Pokeball between her fingers, studying her surroundings carefully. It was a good patch of dry ground, probably the biggest she'd find.

_Good enough._

The flash of light pushed against the darkness hidden beneath the trees as Enma appeared from it. He instantly flinched and leaned forward in caution when he heard the sound of rain, though once he realized no water was reaching them his body relaxed. At least until his eyes set on his trainer.

Inyssa had to stop herself from taking a step back against the venom in his glare.

"Hope you had a good nap," she crossed her arms, chin raised high, "we're going to train now."

Enma let out a sound halfway between a snort and a growl and spat on the ground. Pretending not to acknowledge Inyssa he turned around and started to walk in the opposite direction.

"Enma…" her nails dug deep into the cloth covering her arms. Her Pokemon did not turn around, "Enma! Look at me!"

He did so, not because of obedience but irritation. Dark shadows covered his eyes as he directed a scowl toward her. Once again she had to gather all her courage to stand her ground.

"I need to ask you something. Take this seriously for one second, and you'll be free to do what you want after."

A few seconds of consideration, followed by a reluctant nod.

She braced herself before speaking, "Why are you acting like this? Do you really think you're stronger without me?"

She didn't need to speak Pokemon language to understand his answer. The shifting of his feet, the way he avoided his gaze as he bared his teeth, it all pointed toward what she knew in her heart would be the truth.

"You're not," she spat back, perhaps a bit too much force behind her words. "Last time you disobeyed me and went on your own you ended up unconscious and half buried in the ground."

The fire coating his tail flared up until it was a very pale blue, and the growl that came out of his throat finally managed to make Inyssa take a step back out of fear. She hated herself as soon as she did it.

_Still a touchy subject, huh?_

"You think that was just a fluke?" she asked again, trying to hide the trembling in her voice. "You think that if I just let you fight as you please you'd do better?"

This time he didn't beat around the bush. He nodded decisively, tiny fingers curled into fists. Inyssa swallowed down the sharp pain in her chest due to his answer and bit her lip.

"In that case…" she took four of her remaining Pokeballs into her hands, "let's see if you're right."

Four simultaneous lights tore through the darkness, and from them emerged the rest of Inyssa's team. Steven appeared in the air and veered towards her hat, while Shadi, Kuro and Bret simply turned to look at their trainer, a confused look on their face which Enma shared as well.

She showed them a warm smile as she tried to erase the tension off her shoulders, "Sorry to call you in this storm, but I need your help."

Another deep breath. Another scowl, this time directed at her starter.

"Choose any of them as your opponent," she told him decisively. "This will be a one on one battle. You will fight alone."

She couldn't help but enjoy the shock that ran across Enma's face as her words reached him. He looked at his teammates and then at his trainer, eyes wide like plates.

"You think you're stronger without me?" she challenged him. "Then prove it."

Even her Pokemon turned towards her in a mix of confusion, fear and in Kuro's case excitement. The Monferno's dark eyes studied all of them for what seemed like an entire minute.

A devious smile stretched across his lips. He raised one of his arms and pointed at the small flying Pokemon sitting on her hat.

"Frerr…" he chuckled, eyes full of menace.

The Starly let out a chirp of fear and dug his talons strongly into her hat, making Inyssa squint from the pain.

_Yeah, that's kinda what I figured._

Enma might've been a reckless asshole, but he wasn't dumb. Even with a type disadvantage he must have realized Steven wasn't just the weaker member of her team but the one most averse to combat. Even if his fire would be strong against Bret or Shadi they both had infinitely more combat experience and could deal with him accordingly.

Still, she wouldn't have proposed such a fight if she weren't ready for the worst case scenario.

She raised one hand to softly pat Steven's head, "Hey, no need to be afraid. You're with me, remember?"

The Starly jumped from her hat and flew in place in front of her face, eyes still opened wide and full of terror. His tiny beak shook as he tried to chirp in disapproval.

A violent tug at her heart almost managed to break her smile. Doubt formed in her mind and for a second she considered cancelling the fight altogether. If Steven truly was that scared she couldn't force him to fight, could she?

_You need to set an example. You can't let Enma destroy your credibility as a trainer._

"Steven, do you trust me?"

The question silenced him for a few seconds, until he showed her a nervous nod. Next to him the rest of her Pokemon stared at the Starly with a mix of doubt and pity.

She formed the brightest smile she could and held him with both arms, "I trust you too, and that's why we're going to win. Why? Because there is not a single Pokemon I can't achieve victory with!"

Steven recognized her words instantly, having been at the other side of them a long time ago. The first battle they ever had, back when things had been different. Back when the idea of a fight excited him instead of filling his gut with a terrible unease.

He nodded strongly and twirled toward Enma, furrowing his brow. His wings shook from the wind and cold, and doubt was still very clear in his expression. But he would not run away. Not when his trainer needed him.

A look of respect flashed across Enma's face as their gaze met.

"That's the spirit!," she raised her arm forward, imitating a referee's flag. "Now, start!"

Enma lowered his body until his knees were almost touching the ground, and as if he had springs instead of feet he shot himself forward with enough force to raise a cloud of dust behind him. Steven's body froze at the sight of his opponent coming straight at him, glowing fist raised and a wicked smile across his face, but Inyssa was ready.

"Double Team!"

Steven chirped loudly as he extended both his wings to their full length. The edges of his body shifted and waved as three identical afterimages appeared around his opponent. The Monferno took a chance at the one on the right and buried his fist in his stomach, which faded into smoke as soon as he came in contact with it.

Inyssa allowed herself a smile. She could do this. She could win.

"Maneuver from the back!" she yelled over the sounds of the battle. "Aerial Ace!"

One of the three remaining Stevens swerved right mid flight and dove towards Enma's back, his wings glowing with energy. His opponent caught a glimpse of this, and with the time he had left before the impact he whipped his tail from side to side, sending a small trail of flames in his direction.

The impact sent the fire Pokemon to the ground where he stopped himself with one knee, letting out a pained cry. His opponent made a similar sound, the improvised fire whip managing to burn the underside of his right wing.

Inyssa bit her lip in frustration. She never thought Enma's tail could be used to defend from attacks he couldn't evade. She'd just seen it as decoration, as another part of her Pokemon's body which showed her how angry he was at any given moment. She swallowed the shame down and tried to focus on the fight. That last exchange had ended in her favor, but Enma could take more damage than Steven. She had to think of a way to attack him from the front without him retaliating.

An idea came to mind. Not a very smart one, but it'd have to do, "Steven, fly up to where he can't reach you."

He did as he was told, trying his best to evade the streams of embers being sent his way. She waited until he was at a reasonable height and issued her next command.

"Use Whirlwind on the ground!"

Both Pokemon stared at her for a full second, probably wondering if she'd gone mad. Even Shadi, Kuro and Bret showed a confused look where they were sitting spectating the match.

However Steven did trust his trainer, and as such he did as he was told. He flew even higher, almost reaching the leaves of the trees surrounding them, and started flapping his wings with all the strength he had in him. A gust of wind hit Enma and forced him to bury both legs and one arm in the ground as to not get knocked back. But soon the dirt and dust around them started to rise too, forming a small typhoon which turned the air into a grayish brown and prevented Inyssa from seeing anything but her Pokemon's flaming tail.

Enma let out a frustrated growl as he squinted through the mini sandstorm in search of his opponent, and Inyssa couldn't help but laugh. With such awful visibility it would be impossible to locate Steven, and most importantly it wouldn't allow him to dodge an attack no matter how good his reflexes were.

"Use Quick Attack! Then fly up and keep up the whirlwind!"

Steven retracted his wings and dove into the raging cloud of dust he'd created. He moved fast enough that Enma didn't even have time to raise a fist or attempt to dodge as he was head butted in the stomach with terrifying precision. He was sent backwards and barely managed to stand his ground as he sent another torrent of flame forward.

But the Starly wasn't there anymore. His speed allowed him to get out as soon as his attack connected and was now once again high enough to raise an even bigger whirlwind around them.

Another growl, another sound which very clearly expressed how much Enma was not enjoying the situation. He inhaled deep and shot the biggest flame so far, easily the girth of his own body. However since he had no idea where his opponent was it simply evaporated into thin air as Steven dodged it without much trouble.

Inyssa was suddenly very glad she'd taken some time to study the species of her Pokemon so comprehensively. It had taught her the interesting fact that the Starly evolutionary line possessed an ability called  _Keen Eye_ , which allowed them to see with precision through even the thickest of sandstorms. Enma, on the other hand, depended too much on his own sight to get around and was now caught in a situation where he couldn't do anything.

This continued for about a minute. Enma kept trying to escape by jumping out of the way, but just when he was about to free himself Steven fell on him and threw him to the ground again. Not a lot of damage was being made, but Quick Attack was the only move fast enough to pull off such a strategy, so she had no other alternative.

Besides, she had another plan ready on the wings.

"Freeer!"

Enma's cry pierced through the storm and hit Inyssa straight on, the force of it almost knocking her back. His entire body turned ablaze, expelling a wave of heat which scorched the ground beneath his feet and forced Bret and Shadi to take a few steps back.

The piercing gleam of his eyes cut through the clouds of dust to settle on Inyssa and Steven. She could see the outline of his blazing body and the pale blue that was now the flame of his tail. He lowered his body and letting out a mighty roar he jumped, turning himself into a spinning wheel of fire headed directly towards his opponent.

She suppressed a smile, seeing victory in front of her. "Double Team!"

Enma crashed full force against what appeared to be Steven's body, which evaporated into pale smoke as the real one flew to the side, wings extended to the side and eyes set on the Monferno's back.

"He can't dodge while in the air!" she exclaimed, sending her palm forward. "Use Aerial Ace!"

Realization hit Enma as he fell backwards, the flames covering his body extinguished and his limbs out of balance. His eyes opened wide in panic as he saw Steven soaring towards him with terrifying speed, his entire body covered in a white, blinding light. He sent both wings forward in an X and slashed at his stomach.

The impact knocked the air out of his lungs. Vision turned dark and his consciousness waved, at least until he hit the ground. A painful yank brought him back to reality as he realized he was a few inches buried into the ground.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Inyssa's scream resounded through the forest. "That was amazing Steven!"

A light blush covered the Starly's cheeks as he flew down to his trainer. His feathers were ruffled and covered in dust, and his chest raised up and down accompanying his heavy breathing. Pride burned somewhere behind his eyes.

She gave him a good few pats and scratches on his head before addressing Enma, "Are you satisfied now?"

The Monferno struggled to get to his feet, one hand firmly grasping the ground. His fur was soaked and covered in mud and the flame on his tail burned with a pale, weak red. He let out a pained growl as he attempted to take a step forward, falling to one knee instead as he was unable to keep his own balance.

Inyssa approached as the rest of her Pokemon stared in anxious anticipation. She knew better than to rub salt on the wound, but this was her only opportunity to get the message through his thick skull.

"It'll be easier if you just accept our help," she whispered, getting on one knee. "I promise you'll be stronger if you just let me…"

Her words got caught in her throat as she noticed a strange glow. The fire on his tail grew bigger as she spoke, turning brighter and brighter until it was almost blinding.

She had no time to react as Enma's body was consumed by a ball of flames. She saw the fire approaching until it was almost on top of her, and she froze.

If not by Steven's intervention she would've been severely hurt. The Starly flew like lightning towards her and pushed her back with his own body, taking the blunt of the flames as she fell backwards and barely avoided them. Dry heat washed over her entire body.

"Agh!" she struggled to cover her face with her arms, kicking the ground as she tried to get away from the source of the heat. "W-what the…!?"

Through the folds of her sleeves she saw Steven's body fly backwards, eyes closed and smoke coming out of his wings. Panic rushed through her as she turned around and pushed herself up, running to her Pokemon with a scream caught in her throat.

"Steven!" she kneeled next to him, shaking hands hovering above the burn marks on his wings. She grit her teeth and turned her head to Enma, who was still covered in flames. "Why did you do that!? What the hell is wrong with you!?"

For a single moment she could see regret and panic flash through Enma's expression, the weight of her words making his eyes open wide and his flames wave just a bit.

At least until Shadi threw herself at him with a murderous look on her face.

She slashed at his body, knocking him to the ground as she climbed on top of him. Her scythes pressed against his neck as a piercing cry of anger came out of her mouth.

"Shadi, wait!" Inyssa yelled with a brittle voice, feeling her anxiety form a knot inside her. "You don't have to.."

Another explosion shook the ground and sent mud flying towards her, along with the now unconscious body of her Kricketune. Inyssa let out a yelp of panic as she tried to run towards her, but both Bret and Kuro prevented her, grabbing onto her legs strongly as they urged her to take a step back.

She looked up towards Enma, and the fury bubbling inside her was replaced with fear as soon as their eyes met. All signs of recognition were absent from his expression. He gnarled his teeth at her, taking slow but deliberate steps forward as fire formed around his hands.

Through the sounds of the flames crackling and the pained moans of her Pokemon she heard a beep as her Pokédex came to life and an electronic voice spoke.

_Blaze: An ability exclusive to very few fire types. Once enough damage is taken the Pokemon will go into a frenzy and the power of their fire will increase immensely. Be careful, as a poorly trained specimen can show extremely violent tendencies._

Enma raised one of his hands towards Inyssa, and tentative sparks were born from the ball of fire forming on it. Still on the ground she tried desperately to move backwards as her remaining Pokemon stood at her side, growling at her starter.

A low, broken chirp came out of Steven's beak as he tried to free himself from her arms, eyes barely open and fixated on his previous opponent.

"Wh- no!" she held on to him even tighter. "You're not going anywhere! We have to find Barry and…"

Steven started glowing.

She stared in awe as a white light shone between her hands even brighter than Enma's flames, and the body of her Pokemon grew until she wasn't able to sustain his weight. His talons grazed the ground as he extended his new pair of wings, their length about as big as her own body. The automated voice of her Pokédex spoke again.

_Staravia: The Fock Pokemon - Flying/Normal Type. A very cooperative and friendly species that work exceptionally well with others. The powerful muscles on its wings allow it to reach Mach 1._

Even with the incessant thunder roaring through the sky, even with the rain starting to filter in from the trees above and her own starter attempting to attack her, Inyssa couldn't help but feel happiness at the sight of Steven finally evolving.

_Guess he won't be able to sleep on my head anymore._

The Staravia took a step forward and extended his left wing to warn his trainer, dark eyes now devoid of all doubt as they set on the frenzied Monferno. At his side Bret and Kuro got in similar battle positions.

Enma stared at them in disbelief, and Inyssa noticed his eyes were somewhat out of focus. Red veins clawed through the edges of them and his body waved from side to side, his legs barely able to support his fatigued body. Yet he still lowered his head and threw both arms to the side, coating them in even stronger flames as he prepared for a fight.

"Wait!"

She fumbled to her feet and through the pain in her legs she tried to stop her own Pokemon from charging forward. With the faintest thread of hope tying her together she opened her mouth and spoke.

"E-Enma, please…" she begged, voice weak and thin, "I know this isn't you doing this."

She felt the weight of her Pokemon's eyes on her back, but she didn't care in the slightest. She would not let her fist Pokemon fall to his own rage. She would not lose another friend.

"If you just calm down for a bit we can resolve this," she continued, showing him her open palms. "I'm not angry, I just want to help you."

For a single, beautiful second she really thought her words would pass through his berserk state and reach the true Enma. His pupils dilated slightly and he lowered his shoulders, lip trembling.

Then the flames took over and a roar clawed its way through his throat, hitting Inyssa head on as he spit a torrent of embers.

Red filled her vision as she unconsciously threw herself backwards, the heat licking her right arm and just barely missing the rest of her body. The entire world went black for a few seconds as the back of her head hit the wet ground beneath her. Growls, screams and the sounds of a few impacts flew above her as she slowly tried to roll to her side.

Her Pokemon formed a small circle around her as they tried to protect her, even Shadi managing to make her way to her side. She forced her sight through their bodies and focused on the place where Enma stood just a few seconds before.

He wasn't there anymore.

"Wh-" she tried to get up but her legs failed her, sending her straight to the ground again. "Agh! E-Enma! Enma!"

She felt the softness of Bret's petals under her left arm and the strength of Steven's wings on her right as they lifted her from the ground. She set one foot strongly and expelled herself forward, barely maintaining her balance.

"Enma!" Her yell tore through her throat. "Enma, come back!"

Panic and desperation alone fueled her as she started running towards the darkness between those trees, stepping into the path of the storm.

 

* * *

 

 

Barry really wished he'd followed the first explosion.

He was drifting between awake and asleep when it happened, back against the freezing stone wall of the bridge's pillar. He unconsciously felt the vibrations shake the ground weakly before the bang and flash of light yanked him from his stupor. He and his Pokemon looked towards the forest at the other side of the road where Niss had disappeared to.

"That… is that normal?" He asked, not really expecting to get an answer. "It's probably just Niss training, right?"

Paulette and Razen exchanged a confused look, not knowing how to reply. Kitsune, who was peacefully dozing off against the opposite pillar (a habit he hadn't quite get ridden of since evolving), ignored it completely. Pedri was the only one to take a step forward, brow furrowed and a strange shadow over his face.

"S-should I…" Barry said tentatively, anxiety prickling at the surface of his skin like needles. "I'm sure she can take care of herself, but…"

He made up his mind when the second explosion came. This one definitely sent a tremor through the earth as a powerful flame escaped from the trees into the skies above.

Barry felt his heart drop, "Crap! I gotta go see if they're okay!"

He left the egg in charge of a very grumpy Kitsune and ordered Razen and Paulette to help him. The Staravia took into the air, slightly bothered by the rain pelting her feathers, and followed the boy as he ran towards the sea of trees.

By the time he stopped being bothered by the branches hitting him in the face he had to admit that he was freaking out. Every tree looked the same and the darkness between them was so thick he wasn't sure he was going the right way anymore.

He stopped after a couple minutes when he arrived at a small circle of ground, his heart jumping to his throat. Signs of battle were all over the place; burnt leaves, toppled branches and more than a few scorched holes in the mud the size of a small Pokemon.

And Niss was nowhere to be seen.

"Niss!" he screamed into the night as loudly as he could, "Niss, it's me! Where are you!?"

No voice answered back. Cold washed over his veins as he moved his head from side to side, eyes opened as wide as possible and his entire body shaking. Pedri stared at him in surprise, never having seen his trainer like this.

He had no idea where to go, and the anxiety was eating him from the inside. There were no footprints around either, probably having been washed away by the rain already. He unconsciously started walking in circles, worst case scenarios going through his mind at an alarming rate.

"Niss!" he stomped the ground, a hot feeling growing from his stomach outwards, "Niss where the hell are you!?"

As soon as he said those words the warmth behind his eyes came back, stronger than ever. He didn't have time to be surprised by it as a wave of pain hit him and spread through his limbs, cutting his breath short. His legs lost strength and would've sent him to the ground if Pedri hadn't managed to catch him on time. The Prinplup let out a chirp of worry as he helped his trainer to his feet, whose hair was now covering his eyes.

Barry was more confused about the fact that the pain felt familiar than anything else. Almost like it didn't belong to him. The flash of a distant memory came to his mind: a young, crying Niss with her face buried in her knees.

Realization hit him; this was her pain, somehow. And he could feel exactly where it was coming from.

He took off without an explanation, leaving his Pokemon both confused and concerned as they were forced to follow him. He kept running north for an entire minute before finally exiting the forest and entering the left side of Route 215 once again.

There were four small silhouettes in the distance, surrounding what Barry instantly recognized as his friend.

"Niss!"

Fear crept up on him the more he got closer. First he noticed scorch marks adorning the bodies of her Pokemon. Then he saw the position his friend was in, knees and hands deep in the mud and head lowered. Thick tufts of hair covered her face as her entire body shook.

Shadi walked up to him and growled in desperation as she pointed to her trainer. He walked to her and got on his knees too, putting a hand on her back as he spoke.

"N-Niss?" His voice came out as barely a whisper, "Are you okay!? What happened!?"

She looked up at him, and Barry felt his veins turn to ice. The faint pain he'd been feeling coming from her paralyzed him completely as their eyes met.

"I-I'm sorry..." her voice was completely broken as she spoke, tears running down her face. "H-he's gone. Enma's gone."


	25. A Little Bit to the Left

Metchi tugged at the skirt of the Galactic uniform one last time, all the while cursing every single deity she could think of.

The bloody thing didn't fit her correctly; the boots were too small and the waist too slim. And worst of all the grey and white went horribly with the bright pink of her hair. She looked like a walking, strawberry lollipop.

"I forgot how much I hate this thing," she told the mirror, eyelid twitching. "And of course the guys get pants while we get fucking tights."

_"Stop whining. We need to get this over with before the sun goes up."_

She stared at the empty space behind her with enough contempt to paralyze an Aggron. Still, Azelf was right. She had a very precious time limit she needed to stick to.

She headed north through the empty streets of Solaceon, her only company that of the occasional flocks of Murkrow flying above. She made sure to stay as close to the walls as she could, knowing well that nothing good could come from someone seeing her in a Team Galactic uniform.

The house was at the end of a narrow path between two buildings, obscured from almost every angle by rock and concrete. She stopped before the door and simply stood there, frozen. Sweat ran down her forehead.

_"This will be easy, just get in character."_

Right, easy for Azelf to say. Even though the task ahead was infinitely easier than sneaking up on a Galactic grunt and stealing her uniform, she dreaded this much more.

She knocked on the door, tentatively at first and then with more force once she remembered the role she had to play. Twenty seconds of her listening to her heartbeat went by, and then someone answered. The face that appeared through the crack of the door was that of an old man, his hair the color of ash. Heavy bags hung from his eyes.

"Who…" his croaky voice became high pitched as she came into view. "G-Galactic! What are you…?"

Metchi raised her palm and the old man ceased to speak, as if that gesture alone could steal the air from his lungs. Taking a deep breath she tried to summon all the willpower in her to help her become the person she was a long time ago.

"Professor Willow, right?" She spoke with a low, cold tone which made the man's shoulders tense up. "I was sent here by Charon and Jupiter to inspect the progress of your… investigation."

She was lying of course, in more ways than one. She had absolutely no idea what kind of research this man was currently doing for Team Galactic, which made it pretty lousy as far as leads went. Still, it was the only one they had and they couldn't simply ignore it.

"I…" Willow looked down, unable to meet the girl's eyes, "please, tell them that our experiments have been going well. We still don't have a clear model for a prototype but if you give us just a bit more time…"

"I'm afraid that's not possible," she interrupted. "We're moving toward the next step of our plan and we need the prototype now."

She saw the man's shoulders shake under her words, as if she were delivering a death sentence. Maybe she was, after all she didn't know what Team Galactic had done to convince a scientist of Willow's caliber to help them out.

Still, she was firing blindly and she knew that. The prototype he was talking about could be anything as far as she knew, and since the man didn't have it with him she needed to get creative if she was to get any information out of him.

"As an example of Team Galactic's generosity…" she continued, trying her best not to puke from the words coming out of her mouth, "we will be content if you give us a blueprint of the project. Charon and Jupiter will take care of the rest themselves."

Willow's eyes opened like plates, "B-but that's my research! You can't just…!"

He stopped as soon as the gold of her eyes fell on him. The door creaked behind him as he took a desperate step back.

"You do remember our deal, don't you?" she asked. "I'm sure you wouldn't want anyone to get hurt because of your insolence."

A multitude of expressions flew through the man's face. Fear, desperation, hatred… she couldn't help but wonder what exactly had they threatened this old man with. What she was taking advantage of…

Without saying another word he turned around and disappeared into the hallway leading towards his home, feet stomping the ground. She stood in front of the door, not daring to move or look away, knowing that the slightest change could break the façade she'd put on.

He came back with a brown file in his hands. He stared at it and then at her for what seemed like an eternity before handing it over. She didn't show any emotion as she grabbed it and looked inside, finding a multitude of miscellaneous papers and blueprints.

_Bingo._

"You won't win."

His words caught her off guard, and for a second she dropped the cold expression she'd been wearing as she looked at him.

"Someone will stop you, I'm sure of it…" he whispered. "I know what you lot are planning. You might threaten me and my family all you like, but the world won't stand by and watch as you put something so horrible into motion."

A dry smile formed on her lips. If he only knew…

"We'll see about that," she whispered as she turned around and started walking away.

She didn't stop walking until she was at the northern edge of the city, close to one of the many parks sprinkled around town. This particular one was densely covered with a multitude of thick trees that worked wonders to hide things such as her backpack and her clothes.

She took off the Galactic uniform and threw it on the ground. Stomped on it a few times too,  before changing into her outfit. Then, as usual, she sat against one of the trees and rested her head on the trunk, letting out a deep sigh.

"I can't believe I just did that…" she told the leaves above. "I can't believe I threatened a poor, old man… guess I'm not going to heaven anytime soon."

_"It had to be done. We now have an important lead we can use against Team Galactic."_

She nodded weakly and looked down to the brown file resting on her right hand. Whatever they were trying to develop, whatever they needed all that energy for… it had to be somewhere within those blueprints.

Still, she was too tired to start deciphering them now. That could wait until she got a few hours of sleep and hopefully something to eat.

"Alright, let's hide the uniform somewhere and…"

A beeping noise came from the set of discarded clothes at her feet, startling her enough to make her head clash against the trunk of the tree.

"Ah shit…"

She leaned forward and desperately clawed at the thing looking for whatever was making that sound, knowing full well it could attract all kinds of undesired attention. Finally she found it; a small, red device hidden under the right sleeve of the uniform. It looked like a modified version of a Pokétch.

"Says here that it's an important message to all grunts, from Saturn himself…" She read aloud the tiny words that danced in the screen. "Should I…?"

_"I doubt it would hurt to read it."_

She nodded and pressed the  _O_  button on the right of the device. Even more words scrolled by as she tried to read them under her breath.

"Attention all grunts; I'm sending you a file containing a photo of someone who the boss has deemed dangerous enough for us to capture…" she whispered, pinching her brow. "It is theorized that this person is somewhere around Solaceon or Veilstone. If you come across her you must capture her alive and bring her to the base for processing."

She couldn't help but feel bad for the poor sod who'd gotten on the bad side of Team Galactic to warrant such a response from them. Whoever she was, they had something in common at least.

She lazily pressed another button to open the image attached. A face appeared on the screen, and a gasp escaped her lips.

"Oh…"

She'd recognize that stupid hat and those green eyes anywhere. Her mouth hung open in disbelief as Inyssa stared at her from the other side of the device.

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing Barry saw when they came back to the bridge was his Kadabra laying against one of the stone pillars, sleeping soundly as if nothing was wrong. Which, he remembered, was the exact opposite of what he'd been instructed to do.

"Lazy son of a…"

At least the egg seemed to be cozy enough, still fully draped in his jacket. He knew he couldn't take it away so he simply grabbed his backpack and placed it under Niss' head as he laid her down on the floor.

Uncertainty filled him as he stood there, observing his friend carefully. She looked bad, he didn't need to be a detective to figure that one out. With every minute that passed her skin turned paler, and her muttering hadn't stopped since they'd made a break for it a few minutes ago. Her clothes were completely soaked and thick tufts of hair covered most of her face.

"Prii!"

Pedri kneeled in front of the girl and pointed at her forehead, making a strange gesture with his fin. Barry narrowed his eyes, trying to force his brain to think through the cold that made his teeth clash against each other.

"R-right! I should probably check her temperature," he nodded.

He dried his hands with one of the sleeves of his shirt and put his right on top of the girl's forehead.

His heart dropped. Hot, way too hot for what he imagined her skin should feel like.

"No, no..." he took one of his hands to his hair, eyes opened wide and anxiety piercing through his stomach. "Please tell me this is just a cold…"

Pedri observed as his trainer got up and walked around Inyssa, grabbing his hair and looking like something was just about to start crawling under his skin.

"Her clothes are all wet too!," he reasoned, voice high pitched. "And we don't have anything to make a fire anymore! If she's got a fever we can't wait out the storm, we gotta take her to Veilstone now!"

He stopped suddenly and almost bounced off his feet. His wet blonde hair seemed to gain some of its spikyness back as an idea formed in his mind.

"Kitsune!" He turned towards his Kadabra, hands curled into fists. "Kitsune, wake up!"

The Psychic Pokemon reluctantly opened his eyes and used them to deliver a very clear  _What the hell do you want?_  to his trainer.

"You're psychic, right?" he asked full of hope, and received a look of  _Yeah no shit_  in return. "Can you make like… barriers and stuff? Could you make one big enough for all of us to protect us from the rain? One that lasted 'til we got to Veilstone?"

Kitsune narrowed his eyes and his mustache twitched in annoyance. After a few seconds of consideration he made a gesture that Barry roughly understood as  _Maybe, maybe not_.

He decided that was good enough.

"Alright! Pedri, help me carry her! And you Kitsune take the egg and form a barrier over us!"

With the help of his starter he managed to get the girl on her feet, as unconscious as she was, and turned around to the four worried Pokemon staring at them from across the room.

He tried his best to smile with confidence, "You all need to get back to your Pokeballs! You're hurt and you can trust us to get Niss safely to Veilstone."

There was no moment of consideration. Shadi, Kuro, Bret and Steven moved towards him as if they hadn't heard him at all and positioned themselves around their trainer, eyes full of determination. The Staravia grabbed the free part of her arms with his talons and extended his wings over her head, ready to shield her from the rain if the barrier were to faulter.

"Should've expected that," he sighed, unable to hide his smile. "Come on, before the storm gets any worse."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa wasn't used to dreams, at least none as vivid as the one she was now trapped in.

An endless, pale blue stood before her. She couldn't feel her body. Couldn't feel anything except a light breeze which pleasantly filled her lungs without her needing to breathe.

She tried to take a step forward. The floor beneath her feet rippled as if she were standing on top of water, which seemed to be the case. The expanding lines under her traveled outwards until they were lost on what she assumed was the horizon. No way to tell since everything was the same color.

_Where am I?_

She began walking in a direction. Couldn't really tell which one. Everything was quiet. Too quiet. She couldn't stand it.

_What was I doing?_

She figured out how to close her eyes, and when she opened them again the landscape changed. All around her were what appeared to be traffic signs and light poles, as if she were standing in the middle of a street. She confirmed this when she looked down and a few inches beneath the water saw grey pavement painted with two white lines going north.

She blinked a few more times, but everything stayed the same. Her mind didn't seem happy to comply when she tried to read what it said on the signs. Every time she memorized them her mind became foggy and she immediately forgot them again.

Someone spoke behind her.

"It won't be for long…"

It was if someone touched her with an electrified cable. All feeling came back to her limbs and she turned around so fast her neck clicked.

Standing in front of the endless landscape was Shadi, looking at her with those muddy green eyes of hers.

Even through the hazy feeling of a dream Inyssa's eyes stung. Her body stood frozen as she took in every last detail of the woman. Her skin was as pale as hers, though a bit more lively. Her long, dark hair was tied in a ponytail that reached to her hips, with a single tuft falling to the middle of her angular face.

Her smile was exactly the same as she remembered it. A bit curved and awkward. A bit out of place in the geometry of her face. Beautiful.

"Shadi…"

Her whisper alone managed to make a ripple in the water beneath them, carrying so much desperation that Inyssa felt herself about to break into a million pieces.

Shadi's smile widened, and she lowered herself to meet her sister's eyes.

"I promise I'll be back as soon as I beat the Champion," she spoke with a somber tone, trying to maintain her smile. "Don't worry, I'll have my friends with me. Nothing's gonna happen to us."

Inyssa couldn't help but narrow her eyes at her sister's words. Beat… the champion? What was she talking about? And why did she have to lean down so much to meet her eyes? She wasn't that short…

"No matter what happens, remember that I love you."

A gasp got caught on her throat as realization hit her. She remembered those words. How could she not? They'd been the last ones she ever heard coming from her.

Her gaze veered down towards an old, black dress that covered her body, adorned with a white collar and pink skirt. The outfit she wore that day...

_So this is…_

"Take care, will you?" Shadi's whisper caught her off guard, although not as much as the feeling of her hand on top of her shoulder, "and watch over mom while I'm away. I trust you."

She straightened up and showed her one last smile before turning around. Panic filled Inyssa's mind as she saw her walk away, and everything around her including the water started waving and melting in accordance with the beating of her heart. She tried to scream, tried to beg her sister to stay with her, to not abandon her again. But no matter how much strength she put behind them the words would not leave her throat.

She tried to run but her legs felt glued to the water. She was stuck watching Shadi walk away without any way to prevent it.

Her sister stopped just before disappearing into the horizon, and turned around. Even though she was barely a smudge at that distance Inyssa could feel Shadi's eyes on her, and her voice reached her as if they were next to each other.

"Inyssa, listen to me," her tone became more ragged and heavy, filled with a sense of urgency. "If I fail, you have to take care of it. Don't let me become the same thing as her…"

Confusion danced around her like mist as she tried to decipher what she'd just heard. Shadi hadn't said those things back then, had she?

"Get to the top, Inyssa. Defeat her and finish what I started. And most importantly…"

She barely had time to think before she felt herself falling. Everything turned dark as the water swallowed her and dragged her deep into what seemed like an ocean of black. She tried to claw her way out desperately but her limbs would barely move and water started filling her lungs.

In the middle of that chaos, she heard Shadi one last time.

"Don't trust either of us. I love you."

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing Inyssa felt when waking up was heat washing all over her body. She blinked a few times, her brain still trying to groggily welcome her back to reality. She took a few short breaths as the world formed around her.

She was laying down. Covered in… something. Multiple things, soft and fuzzy. A slight movement of her head revealed them to be blankets, which made sense as far as her still waking mind was concerned. There was also something on top of her head. Wet and heavy.

She tried to move her arm to touch whatever it was, and that's when the pain came. Sharp, pulsing agony traveling from her spine to her forehead, accompanied by a horrible heat that blocked her throat and made her unable to breathe for a few seconds. Scared, she decided to lay still for almost a minute before attempting to move again. This time it was less painful, though not by much. Slowly she shifted her body and tried to position her head sideways to what she assumed was a room.

Assumed, because it was pretty fucking dark, either that or her eyes hadn't adjusted to it yet. A window could be seen at the other side of the room, from which the light of the moon fell and failed to illuminate much.

She didn't need to be the genius she believed herself to be to realize she was probably in Veilstone's Pokemon center. The beds and the stale air from the room felt familiar enough, after all. The fever and weakness clinging to her body, not so much.

_What did I..._

Memories came rushing back then, and Inyssa was pretty sure she'd rather have the physical pain instead.

Images flashed through her mind accompanied by wild, flaring throbs as if something were trying to burst from her head. Dark clouds above. A thunder struck tree. An arc of flame going towards her, behind which two frenzied, red eyes stared at her with such contempt.

 _Enma_.

The word clawed itself out from her throat, coming out as broken and faint as her body felt. She stared at the darkness for what seemed like an eternity, slowly remembering every detail of what had happened to get her where she was. Enma going berserk and attacking her, Steven's evolution, Barry's arms carrying her…

She shifted her body sideways, biting her lip hard to ignore the pain that came with every movement, and as her eyes adjusted to the darkness she noticed her belt full of Pokeballs laying across the bedtable at her left. Desperately she clawed at the air with one hand, missing at first. A second, more careful swing landed her fingers on top of what she knew was Enma's ball.

The weight of it was enough to know it was empty.

She stared at the red and white of the ball for an entire minute, dry lips slightly parted and her heartbeat pounding in her ears. She closed her eyes and unconsciously tried to retreat to the safest part of her mind, where realization wouldn't find her. Where she could be oblivious and not have to face the reality presenting itself in front of her, baring its teeth and claws and ready to tear her to shreds.

She failed. Her veins turned to spikes from the inside out as a sob got caught in her throat. Everything became blurry. The air around her was heavy and hot. Too hot, burning her throat and lungs.

_Stop, please…_

She threw her head back into the pillow and bit on her lower lip, fighting the incoming panic attack with the small ounce of strength she had left. Her heart turned into a molten piece of rock inside her chest, weighing her down and making her unable to get off the bed no matter how much her weak arms tried.

Her eyes veered left, only barely being able to see her Pokeballs at the edge of her sight. Would the rest of her Pokemon be there? Why would they? If Enma abandoned her what reason would they have to stay? If she couldn't even train a single Pokemon, if she couldn't even…

Her right hand climbed to her chest as she lifted her chin up, her breathing fast and erratic. Air wasn't enough anymore, and her limbs felt weaker and weaker with every second that passed. The pointy bits on the spikes inside her veins grew larger and tore her apart from the inside.

 _Remember Sarah's advice_ , a remote part of her mind told her.  _Visualize your current situation and be realistic about it._

She swallowed hard and did her best to think past the fog clouding her mind. She was safe, she was in a Pokemon Center. At worst she'd caught a fever and…

And Enma abandoned her. Her first Pokemon left her because he knew what a pathetic, awful person and trainer she was and…

_Focus!_

She stabbed her palms with her nails and dove harder into the safe part of her mind. Her Pokemon loved her. All of them had jumped to protect her from Enma because they loved her and…

Pity. That's all that was. Pity for their arrogant, stupid trainer who couldn't handle the least bit of tragedy before she broke down in front of them. Weak and brittle, the exact opposite of what a true Champion should be.

_Open their Pokeballs. They're still here with you._

She curled into a ball under her sheets. She didn't want to, she was too scared. Her lungs burned and her head throbbed with so much pain she had trouble even forming coherent thoughts. If she was gonna die there…

_Barry._

The name shone a light inside her mind, allowed her to barely get the sheets of her. A gust of cold air hit her and filled her lungs for what felt like the first time.

_Barry brought me here. Barry helped me._

She nodded against her body's wishes and closed her eyes, grabbing onto the side of the bed with as much strength as possible. She forced herself to take slow, deliberate breaths despite feeling like she'd suffocate.

_I can do this._

The assault on her senses lasted for almost five more minutes, though they felt like hours to Inyssa. Once the heat and pain went away and her heart returned to normal she collapsed on the bed, covered in sweat and unable to move a muscle. She felt dull and empty, but at least not about to die anymore.

Through the aftermath her mind tried to pick up the pieces of her. Carefully put them back together again, making sure they wouldn't fall off and become even more broken than they already were.

With enormous effort she got the rest of the sheets off her body and landed her feet on the ground. The pieces didn't quite feel like they fit correctly, she thought. Something was wrong.

It was as if she were existing just a little bit to the left.

Nothing walking around the room couldn't solve, she told herself.

Her legs weren't happy with suddenly having to support her entire body. She raised both arms to the side in an attempt to gain some balance as she leaned back and forth. Her head felt too light, as if the inside of it were made of helium, and her limbs had the consistency of jelly as far as she could tell.

_Focus. What do I do now?_

The wooden floor creaked beneath her feet as her mind tried not very hard to come up with an answer while it focused her sight on her socks.

_Huh, I still have my clothes on._

Clothes which were covered in sweat, she realized. She could feel it running down her neck to her back, pleasantly cold compared to the furnace that was her skin.

_A shower would be a nice way to start I guess._

So get into the shower she did, throwing her clothes on the bathroom's floor and turning the faucet as far as it would go. The sound of the water splattering against the ceramic floor made for some nice background noise as she simply stood under it.

A faint pain flared through her skin as hot clashed against hot, though not enough to make her move or turn the temperature down. Her hair lost form as it stuck to her scalp, eventually covering her eyes and turning everything dark. She let it happen, even though her nose was starting to get itchy.

Her eyes were dull and faded, and her body moved almost automatically.

"Enma's gone."

Her tone couldn't have been more plain if she tried. Her lips formed those words sloppily and threw them out to die under the endless assault of the droplets of water.

She repeated them again in her mind. No emotion other than cold acceptance came out to react to them. Once more, and nothing. One last time just to make sure.

Absolutely nothing. Her chest felt cold and empty, and the scolding water did very little to fix that. She sighed and threw her head backwards, only realizing she should've closed her eyes after a few drops fell on them.

Enma was gone. He abandoned her, ran into the night after attacking her and the rest of her Pokemon while in a frenzy. He was gone.

She nodded with every sentence, forcing herself to process them fully. She accepted them, turned them into an immovable truth inside her heart. It was a heavy truth, perhaps heavier than she could handle.

_What are you going to do now? Are you going to let this break you?_

A memory resurfaced on her mind. She was a couple years younger, kneeling in front of her mother's bed as Johanna turned away from her, covered to her nose in sheets and disregarding every one of her pleas. Inyssa was hungry. She was crying. She was begging her to move, to do anything besides stay collapsed there surrounded by empty bottles and wistful sobs, whispering her missing daughter's name under her breath.

Inyssa curled her fingers into fists with enough force to make her muscles protest painfully. A small ember of fury escaped from the fog covering her body and traveled through her veins, giving her enough strength to lift her head and stand up straight.

With deliberate fingers she moved the tufts of hair that were covering her face, revealing a pair of burning green eyes.

"I am not like her…" she said to the empty room.

She would not turn into an empty husk like her mother had back then. She was stronger than that, stronger than anything the world could throw at her. Stronger than Shadi, stronger than her father and Enma and everyone who decided to turn their backs on her.

_Are you really?_

She drove her fist into the pink tiles of the wall, regretting it two seconds after her knuckles met with the hardness of ceramic. Cursing under her breath she shook her head, deciding to get the damn shower over with before she ended up hurting herself any further.

The cold air which hit her as she stepped out was pleasant enough that she simply stood there for a couple minutes, breathing in and out methodically with her eyes closed and head thrown back. Her body was more grounded in reality now, as far as she could tell, and her head didn't feel like it would start flying out like it had before.

On top of the second bedtable she found another set of clothes ready, probably put there by the local nurse. Clean, dark denims and a white turtleneck shirt which smelled like lavenders. She took the fabric to her nose and inhaled deeply, the scent putting a miniscule smile on her face.

After dressing herself she simply stood in the middle of the room, wiggling her feet while she leaned back and forth. Nothing of interest could be seen other than her coat, hat and scarf being slowly dried on top of the heater.

That dissociation feeling caught up with her again, and before she knew it a few minutes had passed with her doing absolutely nothing but stare at a wall. She was so lost in thought that she almost jumped out of her skin when someone opened the door.

She turned around so fast her sight blurred. Through the thick fog covering her eyes she saw a lot of yellow on top of someone's head, with the distinct shape of what her mind thought was a banana.

"Barry?"

The boy froze on his tracks, hands slightly raised at his side and a look of worry over his face. Inyssa couldn't help but notice the red on his nose.

"Hey, Niss…" he whispered, shoulders stiff. "I heard something and I… uh…"

She had to think her way through the clogged up gears in her brain to decipher the reason for the boy's flustered behavior. Once she realized she couldn't help but let out a weak laugh that sent ripples of pain through her body.

She put both hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at him, "Wow Barry, walking into a girl's room without knocking? And here I thought you were a gentleman."

He put a hand behind his neck, smiling nervously, "If that's what you thought then you clearly weren't paying attention."

She nodded in approval and turned around toward her bed. With difficulty she sat on one extreme of it and patted the other with her right hand. Barry got the message and followed after a few seconds, eyes still set on his friend and full of concern.

They sat next to each other in silence for a few heartbeats, until Barry gathered enough courage to speak up.

"How are you feeling?"

She scowled at his question, a speck of frustration coming to life inside her. She opened her mouth to reply, but stopped herself.

_It's not his fault._

"I feel like shit," she shrugged, eyes fixated on the floor. "Probably look like shit too."

"Well, it's dark so I kinda can't see anything."

A single, dry chuckle escaped her lips. She felt the weight of his body shift next to her as he crossed his legs and bowed his head in embarrassment.

"Thanks for saving my ass back there."

His eyes gained a bit of their usual brightness, and his lips slightly curved upwards. Inyssa liked that. She forgot how much she missed his stupid smile and how out of place he looked without it. Like a painting without color.

"It wasn't just me," he answered, pointing at the belt on top of the table. "All our Pokemon helped too. Yours were super worried and when we made it here it took an hour to convince them that they should get some sleep."

Inyssa raised a hand to both scratch her cheek and try to hide the fact that her lips were quivering.

"Looks like I got a whole lotta people worried for no reason, like the dumbass I am."

She sighed, feeling the remnants of the determination she'd found in the shower disappearing as the night swallowed them.

After a few moments of silence she decided to ask what was on her mind, "How long was I out?"

"Uh… like eight hours I think. The nurse said it was a mix of the fever and the exhaustion catching up to you."

"Right…"

Another silence. Thicker than the last one, and quite a bit heavier too if her dropped shoulders had anything to say about it. Though perhaps it was just her tiredness wanting her to get her ass to bed again.

The boy opened his mouth and closed it about three times, as if there was a knot of words inside his throat that he wasn't quite able to unravel. She gave him all the time he needed and eventually he stammered his way to what he wanted to say, avoiding Inyssa's gaze.

"I… today while you were sleeping, I went around and..." he gulped, fingers playing with each other, "well, anyway, the nurse and the Gym leader said they'd do everything they can to find Enma."

Hearing his name come from someone else's mouth hurt a lot more than she expected, though she did a good job of hiding it from him.

"You met the Gym leader already?"

"Y-yeah, she's pretty cool. She actually said she wanted to talk to us. Once we recover, obviously"

She tried to process that piece of information and swiftly realized she couldn't force herself to give a shit. The premise of a Gym battle seemed so sour now, so empty. Barry was quick to catch on to her lack of enthusiasm and reacted accordingly by hitting her with his stupid, worrying beady eyes which she couldn't meet. Not yet anyway.

Not until she said what she wanted to say.

"Barry… I think there's something wrong with me."

At the very least she got some enjoyment from the befuddlement on his face as her words caught him off guard.

"What… do you mean?"

_That's a good question. What do you mean?_

She  _Hrumphed_  as she raised her legs up to the edge of the bed and hugged her knees. Her answer was stuck somewhere between her heart and her throat and it took her some time to forcefully get it out.

"It just keeps happening," she spoke to the space between her knees. "No matter what I do… people keep leaving me."

Barry's shoulders dropped as he realized what she was implying.

"Niss…"

"I mean, it can't be a coincidence anymore, right?" She argued to no one. "I'm not a scientist but I'm pretty sure that when so many points of data start piling up it's time you come up with a hypothesis."

She felt a pair of narrowed eyes on her, "I… don't know about that last thing you said, but none of what happened is your fault, Niss."

"Right, it just so happens that everyone who gets close to me leaves eventually."

A warm hand fell on her shoulder, startling her. Her fingers closed even more strongly against the fabric of her jeans.

"I'm not gonna leave you."

A sardonic chuckle was her response.

"Thanks, but I don't believe you."

She regretted her words the moment she said them. A slight movement of her head to the right put into view Barry's darkened expression, and she didn't need a light shining on it to realize her friend was hurt.

"I'm sorry…" she hid her face once more in shame. "See? That's just what I do, I treat people like shit and they get tired of me."

"That's not true!" Barry replied adamantly, his hand still grabbing onto her shoulder. "You've always been good to me and you're smart and funny and kind! You're a good person, Niss."

Another bitter laugh, this time mixed in with something that might've been a sob. She wasn't sure and didn't want to find out either.

"A good person. I'm a good person…" she repeated, the words not making any sense to her. "Was I a good person when I left home after yelling at my mom? Was I a good person when I acted like a spoiled brat in front of Roark because things didn't go my way for once?"

"That's not…" Barry gulped as he tried to think of what he wanted to say. "That doesn't mean that…"

"How about that time I didn't give a shit about the blown up bridge because I wanted to get to Eterna fast?" she interrupted, raising her head and setting her eyes on him. "Or when I got my Pokemon killed because I wanted to play the hero? And don't forget all those times I treated Metchi like shit because I didn't trust her even though she's probably doing more to fight Team Galactic than the both of us!"

The moment those screams left her mouth so did the small flame of anger that brought them to life. Inyssa laughed weakly and let her head fall on top of her knees. She didn't care about waking up anyone or about the clear signs of worry on Barry's face. None of that would make any difference.

Another sigh lost, hidden in the folds of her jean. Another couple of tears she wouldn't let anyone see.

"God, what was I thinking?" She asked no one, pressing her forehead against her legs. "I look back and all I see is more and more evidence than I'm... horrible. The way I treat people... my mom, you, Lucas, Percy and Reiko… how did I get them to spend more than a few minutes with me? How can they fucking stand me after everything I did?"

She felt Barry's weight leaving the bed, his feet making the wooden floor creak under them. She didn't dare to look up; it was probably just him getting tired of having to be submitted to hearing her stupidity. No one could blame him.

A pair of hands landed on top of her knees.

"Niss, listen to me."

Her eyes, quite a bit braver than her, accompanied her head as she lifted it up. She could make up Barry's face a few inches from hers. His expression was unreadable, which was unusual for him.

"Everyone makes mistakes, us more than most people," he tried to form a smile, though it died halfway through, "but you're forgetting about all the good things. Back in Floaroma you did save Katie and her dad, didn't you?"

"I only wanted recognition," she spat that excuse almost automatically.

Barry laughed, "We both know that's not true, but fine. How about the promise you made to Roark? That you would help him get his city back once you become the Champion. Or how about when you inspired Lucas to start his own journey?"

His arms slowly got to work on unraveling the knot that had become her body, starting by lowering her legs to the ground and untangling her arms. She hadn't realized until then how painful that posture was.

"You adopted Shadi and Bret after they were abandoned," he continued, tone sweet and gentle, "you helped Steven recover his confidence and never stopped believing in him. And I don't need to tell you that you're an amazing and inspiring trainer because both Gardenia and Fantina already did that for me."

He grabbed her hands and lowered them to the edge of the bed, where their fingers met. Inyssa found herself unable to say anything, too taken aback by her friend's words.

"You're strong, Niss," his eyes seemed to beam as he said those words. "That's what everyone realizes as soon as they meet you, because it's the most obvious thing in the world. And yeah, you might have some things to learn from what you did, but who doesn't? You're still the coolest person I know."

Inyssa swallowed hard in a vain attempt to drown the embarrassing sound stuck in her throat. Though she could do very little about the tears falling down her cheeks, especially when she didn't dare move her fingers from under his. Nothing in the world could convince her to do that.

"Look at me, needing you to lift my spirits," she shook her head shamefully. "If I'm gonna break down every time something bad happens..."

"Then I'll be right here for you," Barry interrupted, tone hopeful. "It's okay to hurt, Niss. There's nothing wrong with needing help from a friend once in a while."

She leaned her head forward and let a few strands of hair cover her eyes. A pale, crooked smile appeared in her lips.

"God, what the fuck did I ever do to deserve you?"

No need to see him to know his expression brightened. She wasn't sure she could sustain the weight of another one of his stupid smiles without her heart turning to mush.

"I'm just doing my job," he shrugged. "And since I'm so good according to you that means you gotta believe what I'm saying about you being great."

She narrowed her eyes in confusion before her friend's strange logic, unknowingly being forced to submit to it.

"Can't argue with that, I guess."

Barry clapped both hands, a huge grin on his face, "Great, that settles it then! Let it be known that Inyssa Dawn is the coolest person ever and my most beloved friend!"

She rolled her eyes, "Okay, let's not get too crazy here…"

"And, since you're unfortunately still recovering from a fever..." he continued, completely ignoring her, "that means that I'm the leader until you get better, and I get to decide what we do from now on!"

"Is that so?" She raised one eyebrow at him, trying to contain a smile. "Then tell me oh fearless leader, what are your orders for the day?"

The boy stood up to his full height and lifted his chin, as if he were about to give a very important speech.

"First of all…" he began, his voice booming and exaggerated, "we're gonna have to rest. The storm left us both pretty weak and we've been going through our journey too fast already. I say we go to visit the Gym leader later and ask her why she wanted to see us, but we don't challenge her until after we're well and healthy."

She nodded weakly. As much as her spirit was willing she knew her body wouldn't allow her to continue at the same pace as the previous weeks. The Gym would have to wait.

Barry raised one finger and continued, "Second, we play lots of videogames and eat lots of ice cream! That's an order!"

She extended her palm and put it next to her forehead, imitating a military salute.

"Aye aye, cap'n."

They looked at each other with serious expressions for a few heartbeats, before breaking into an uncontrollable, high pitched laughter that echoed all through the room and made her belly hurt.

_The nurse is so going to scold us for the noise._

"That's all, soldier," Barry performed a mocking bow, chuckles still escaping his lips. "You can go back to bed now. I'm sure you can't wait to be sleeping again."

She had to admit to herself he was right. Not even eight hours unconscious could get rid of the exhaustion that covered her like a thick blanket.

With lazy movements she got up from the bed and stood in front of Barry, who towered over her just a bit more than she expected.

_Has he always been this tall?_

"Thanks for… everything," she put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it tightly. "In the morning I'll make sure to buy you a nice breakfast for your trouble, you big…"

She barely had time to react as Barry grabbed the hand on top of his shoulder and pulled her close, trapping her in a hug. Her face was now between his neck and collarbone and she felt her friend's arms closing around her back.

He landed his chin on top of her head before sending a whisper her way.

"Sleep well and take care, ok?" his voice was deep and serious. "Both me and your Pokemon want you to get better."

She cursed internally as she realized he had her arms trapped under his, which prevented her from getting rid of the thing leaking from her eyes to the collar of his shirt. Yet another thing she had to ruin. Barry didn't seem to mind however, since he continued speaking.

"And please, believe what I told you earlier. You're the most important person to me, Niss. There's a reason for that."

Her throat turned painful as it tried to contain a sob. And as she looked up towards Barry's eyes something became clear in the deepest part of her mind. A truth that by all means she should've accepted a long time ago.

She swallowed that truth down, which landed someplace behind her ribcage and promptly decided it would be a good place for it to live from now on.


	26. The Boy In The Lake

Inyssa's hands clasped the controller so hard she felt it would break in half at any moment. Her breathing was slow and deliberate, and her unblinking gaze was set on the television in front of them. Barry sat next to her, slowly and methodically taking cookies to his mouth.

"You know you have a shield, right?" he asked, mouth full of cookies. "You should use it sometime."

She huffed, without taking her eyes off the game, "That's only there for stamina regeneration, and besides blocking with a shield doesn't give you invincibility fr…" she reeled backwards, hitting the head of the sofa with her nape. "Shit! Oh god, that was too close."

Inyssa's character in the game had barely managed to avoid the swing of the boss' fire sword. The beast running around her looked like a mix between a gigantic spider and a scorpion, which was also on fire.

"Come on, come on…" she whispered through ragged breath. The beast jumped towards her character. "Shit, roll! Wait no! Not into the lava! Not into the goddamned lava!" She let out a pained growl and buried her face within her hands. "Motherfucker…"

Barry had no qualms about laughing at her misfortune, hands over his stomach. Inyssa shot him a look which could've frozen a Tyranitar and punched his arm with one hand, while handing him the controller with the other one.

"Here, you take it." She let herself fall against the sofa, crossing her arms tightly. "This boss is bullshit anyway."

"You know that weaknesses exist, right?" he said as he put his hand on the controller. "Why didn't you use the ice spear?"

She shrugged, "Not strong enough. It's not my type of weapon."

"Well in this case it would be more than enough, since the boss is weak to it. It's also a lot quicker so you can stun it."

Inyssa's cheeks flushed and she looked to the side, avoiding his gaze, "S-shut up! It's not my style, okay?"

She wrestled the bag of cookies from his side now that his hands were occupied, to the boy's dismay. She angrily put a few in her mouth and chewed strongly, eyes still narrowed in frustration.

"You're starting to sound like Lucas," she protested, the shadow of a smile crossing her lips. "Don't you dare go all nerd on me."

Barry's fingers froze on the buttons, and the character on the screen almost fell to her death. The boy's eyes opened wide.

"Lucas!" he yelped, looking at her. "We forgot to tell him that we were gonna stay here for a while!"

Inyssa froze too, with that distinct feeling one gets where they realize they forgot something important. Anxiety, she figured it was.

Barry was right, both of them had assured the boy they'd go to Pastoria as soon as they were done with Veilstone's Gym leader, but back then she didn't expect to both lose her starter and catch a strong fever in the way.

She'd been in Veilstone for a week already, and not only had no one run into Enma but her sickness refused to go away, weakness clinging to her bones. It slowly waned with each day that passed, but too slowly for her liking.

"We should probably give him a call later," she nodded and couldn't help but feel bad. "To Percy and Reiko too. Hopefully they're still there by the time we get to Pastoria."

Barry nodded, a wistful look on his face.

"I hope he's okay." he whispered, hands still over the controller. "Wonder what he's doing now…"

 

* * *

 

 

Lucas wasn't used to breaking the rules, in the same vein that a Durant wasn't used to walking into a Heatmor's nest. He wasn't morally objected to it; after all he knew first hand that the greatest discoveries in history had come from people thinking and exploring out of the box.

Still, breaking into a place which Rowan had explicitly warned him was dangerous was somewhat out of his comfort zone. He couldn't help being startled and jumping every time a branch brushed his side, to the annoyance of his starter. He could feel the air getting colder and denser as he made his way through the thick flora which laid northeast of Pastoria.

"It… it shouldn't be this cold, right?" he whispered, hugging himself. "We were just on Route 213! People were on their bikinis there!"

The large quadrupedal Pokemon at his side raised his sight slightly and let out a deep sigh. Archimedes had grown more than a little bit ever since he evolved, and now he sported two robust bushes coming out of his back. He stomped his feet carelessly, leaving giant footsteps where he walked.

Lucas stroked his chin, "Could it be because of the trees? Maybe the flora around here acts as a sort of heat eater, similar to that of a Piloswine's fur. The roots, trunk and leaves could absorb not only carbon dioxide but also the warmth of the earth and air."

He'd taken his Pokétch close to his mouth as he spoke. On the first days of his travels he'd learned that carrying a notebook and pen around while he explored was counterproductive and slow. He found it far more efficient to record everything he said and then write it down later in the commodity of his room.

"Not the discovery I was expecting, but it's a nice surprise," he told Archimedes, a satisfied smile on his face.

The Grotle growled in response, shaking the ground around them. He didn't seem to be paying attention to his diatribes, judging by the way his dark eyes studied everything around him carefully. His knees were somewhat lowered and the leaves sprouting from his back seemed to be more ruffled than usual.

"Grrr…"

"Come on Archie, don't be a grump," Lucas said. "We spent a couple hours yesterday studying all the species that could appear around here, didn't we? The worst we could run into is a Quagsire and I'm sure you can take care of that in a jiffy."

Archimedes gave him another frustrated growl as he shook his head, though he decided not to argue any longer.

Things started to get odder as they advanced forward. The trees became twisted and less colorful. Roots grew closer to the ground and Lucas came close to tripping face first into the floor more than a few times. But strangest of all was the complete lack of any chirp or growl coming from the wild Pokemon of the area, which had been plentiful only a few minutes before.

"Come on, it's gotta be around here…"

Their last barrier ended up being a thick berry bush almost twice as tall as him. With herculean effort Lucas was able to make his way through the myriad of branches and emerged with his coat and beret stained with red.

"Oh… oh no," he shivered when he touched the sticky berry juice, sticking a tongue out in disgust. "I'm gonna… have to ask Sierpinski to wash this out later."

Archimedes didn't have as much trouble as his trainer, choosing to simply stomp over the entire bush and flatten it beneath his feet. He even took a bite out of a couple branches, just to prove a point.

Lucas would've protested if he weren't so entranced by the sight before him. Beneath his feet dirt and sand danced together as they advanced towards the enormous body of water that stretched in every direction only a few feet ahead. No plant or tree grew close to the shore, and the ground itself felt colder and colder the closer it was to the water, to the point where it was frozen in some places.

Mist came out of his lips as he breathed, and he could feel the cold turning his fingertips numb and drying his throat. For once in his life he was thankful for his stubborn refusal to ever take out his scarf and hat.

He took a few steps forward and the ground crinkled under his feet, "Lake Valor… this is so much different than in pictures."

Sunlight reflected off the clear waters in front of him, almost making it seem like there was something shining underneath the lake. The closer he got the more a part of his mind wanted him to jump into it. It looked so inviting…

Another growl from Archimedes brought him back to reality. He shook his head and turned towards his Pokemon.

"I… we should probably start investigating," he said. "Looks like my earlier theory was wrong. We gotta figure out where this cold is coming from and why are the Pokemon around the lake acting so strangely."

Archimedes stomped his feet strongly, failing to get his trainer's attention as he walked towards the lake. The Grotle's sight went from Lucas to the trees beneath them with desperation, eyes narrowed and body lowered.

"We'll need help for this," Lucas said as he took a Pokeball out of his belt. "Sierpinski, come out!"

The light appeared on top of the water, forming into a large blue creature with a long neck and a sturdy shell covering his back. Four flippers grew from the sides of his oval body. The Lapras's bright eyes and warm expression changed to a pained frown as he felt the temperature of the water he was now swimming in.

"Laa!" he cried, narrowing his eyes at Lucas.

"I'm really sorry!" the boy lowered his head. "I know it's really cold! I promise I'll make it up to you later with treats."

While the two exchanged growls and apologies the Grotle stood behind, eyes set on the shadows coming out of the forest. He took a few steps back and tried his best to concentrate. He could almost hear…

"We just need to get to the cave at the center of the lake," Lucas explained with a nervous smile. "If we can find the source of…"

He stopped. In front of him Sierpinski opened his eyes wide as a cry got caught in his throat. Looking at something past his trainer.  _Behind you!_  He seemed to say.

Lucas turned around to see the trunk of a tree flying towards him. Sierpinski's Pokeball fell from his hands, and his legs refused to move. Almost on top of him now, and he didn't even have time to let out a scream.

Something jumped between them, taking the blunt of the impact and catching the trunk with his maw. Archimedes bit down on the tree and shoved it aside with monumental effort, breathing heavily. Lucas stood frozen for a few seconds, his mind unable to react to what had just happened.

"Wh… what.." he whispered, "what was…?"

A high pitched yelp escaped his lips as he looked up towards the forest. Two red, burning lights stared him down from the darkness within those trees. Eyes.

Behind him Sierpinski let out a cry of anger directed at whatever that was, and Archimedes got into battle position while he pointed the bushes on his back towards its direction.

The wild Pokemon stepped into view, and Lucas had to contain a sob of terror.

He'd never seen something so horrifying in his life. A giant scorpion-like Pokemon, easily twice as tall as him stood at the edge of the forest. Her head was oval shaped with two white protrusions coming out of her mouth. Her body was divided into violet and lavender sections that ended in a long tail which moved from side to side behind her. Two thin arms came out from under her neck, and at the end of them there were pincer-like claws covered in what he imagined was some sort of venom.

"Draaaaa!" The thing yelled, stabbing the ground with the claws of her right hand.

Lucas wanted to cry. He felt the cold clinging to his bones and turning his body into a shaking mess, unable to react to the beast staring him down with such contempt.

Something hit his back, bringing him back to the reality. He turned around and Sierpinski's eyes met him, full of urgency. He shook his head strongly and nodded, he couldn't just stand there.

"R-right!"

With shaking fingers he grabbed the Pókedex from his pocket and pointed it at the terrifying beast, whose four robust legs were slowly walking her closer to them. He did not want the word  _closer_  to have anything to do with him and that thing. The device came to life and an electronic voice filled the shore:

_Drapion: The Venomous Monarch Pokemon - Poison/Dark Type. Its tail and claws have enough power to turn a car into scrap, and the poison that soaks them can kill in mere minutes. Its body is covered in a protective armor and its head can rotate 180 degrees, eliminating all blind spots. Avoid running into this species at all cost unless you count with a powerful team._

"But…! That's impossible!" he screamed into the uncaring cold. "You're not supposed to be here! This doesn't make any sense!"

The wild Pokemon seemed to understand the words being spoken, and sporting a wicked grin which showed her fangs she raised her head proudly. She closed and opened her claws as her feet stomped the ground beneath her.

All hope of a peaceful resolution died the moment he realized the Drapion was challenging him and his Pokemon to a duel. One that, he assumed, he'd not walk out from if he were to lose.

The bravest part of his mind tried to fight the rest and forcefully make him declare an attack before the beast got bored of waiting and tried to snap his… well, everything in half with her claws.

Luckily there would be no need for that, what with his Lapras being infinitely braver than he was and attacking before even receiving the order to do so.

He exhaled deeply and spit a short torrent of scalding water, which left a trail of steam as it traveled forward. The Drapion growled and jumped out of the way with little effort, and the ground where she previously stood unfroze as the attack fell.

In mid air she hit the ground with her tail, raising a cloud of dirt their way. Her four feet hit the ground with a loud thump and she started running forward before another attack could be thrown at her.

 _Fast_  was about the only word in Lucas' mind as the behemoth appeared in front of them in a blink. A heavy shadow fell on top of him and his Lapras, a whole bunch of purple blocking his view. He jumped backwards and let out a high pitched (and somewhat embarrassing) shriek.

"U-use Frost B…!"

He didn't get to finish his order. The Drapion raised her left arm towards the sky, smiling maliciously, and the sun reflected on the white of her claws. A short chuckle was the only thing she thought he deserved as she threw her claws forward, ready to snap her prey in half.

She stopped a few inches short of his face, and a pained cry escaped her mouth. Lucas watched horrified as she rotated her head towards her back, where Archimedes had trapped her tail within his maw, dark eyes burning with rage. She tried to snap it free with her powerful muscles but to no avail, and before she had time to react her body was flung upwards with strength she did not expect from such a pitiable Pokemon. The Grotle managed to lift her entire body with his mouth and with all his might he threw her towards the forest.

Through the thick layers of fear currently paralyzing him, Lucas had the small hope the creature would fall to the ground and hurt herself. Such hope was short lived as the Drapion grabbed one of the nearby trees with her tail and slithered until her entire body was coiled around it. She opened her mouth and bared her fangs, crushing the trunk with her muscles as if it were a toothpick. The message was very clear:

 _This will be you,_  her eyes told Lucas.

 _I'd rather not if that's okay with you_ , his trembling legs replied.

"Sierpinski, use Frost Breath on her legs!"

He threw his hand forward as he yelled, just like he remembered Inyssa doing when they battled together. The absolute confidence in her posture, the way her eyes showed no doubt or fear… he could only pray that image would give him even an ounce of courage for the fight ahead.

The Lapras breathed a white, gelid mist, which spiraled forward an at impressive speed and turned the ground to solid ice. Lucas was more than a few feet away from the Pokemon and even he could feel the cold sticking to his bones and his breath becoming visible.

Drapion tried to jump out of the way again but the attack caught the tip of her tail, nailing her to the ground and making her land on top of the frozen dirt. Crystals emerged from around her feet, growing larger and preventing her from moving. For some reason the attack wasn't as strong on her as he expected, but it would have to do.

"Archimedes, reinforce that with Leech Seed!"

Two thick vines jumped from the bushes on the Grotle's back, coiling for a second before diving into the ground. After a few moments after dozens of roots sprouted around Drapion, grabbing her tail and legs strongly and pulling her down. She desperately tried to set herself free, hacking at the ice around her with her claws, slowly breaking it apart. The muffled cry of pain and frustration which came out of her mouth turned Lucas' blood cold.

_You have time, use it!_

He raised the back of his hand close to his face and started fiddling with the Pokétch attached to his wrist. His fingers moved as fast as humanly possible, and after a couple of failed tries he managed to press the  _Emergency Beacon_ button, which flashed red thrice before turning off.

A sigh of relief escaped his lips. The device would now send a cry of help to any other Pokétch nearby, alerting them of his exact location. If he could just hold off for a few minutes…

A loud crunch caught his attention, directing him to the sight of Drapion finally freeing her tail from the roots and ice. The ones around her legs were starting to weaken too under the constant barrage of her sharp claws.

Without thinking he took his hand to his remaining Pokeball and threw it into the air. The flash of light materialized into a flying creature with dark brown plumage and a head shaped like an owl. Her light colored eyebrows went to the side and up in a trident shape and her red eyes pierced through the mist like a knife cutting through velvet. She barely needed a second to study the situation around her, and before Lucas had time to give out an order she dived towards their foe.

"Hypnosis!" Lucas yelled, turning his hands into fists. "T-try to put her to sleep!

Just before reaching her foe the Noctowl stopped and extended her wings, opening her eyes as wide as she could. A strange wave of energy was expelled from them, hitting the Drapion in the face. Her limbs lost strength and fell to the ground, and the beast had to struggle to keep herself awake as she leaned back and forth.

Lucas grit his teeth. He knew the effect wouldn't last long, not with her natural resistance to psychic attacks. This was his chance to attack.

"Tiresias, use Echoed Voice! Sierpinski, Water Pulse!" he ordered, throwing his hand forward once more. "Archimedes, Razor Leaf!"

All his Pokemon attacked in unison. The Grotle stomped his feet on the ground and pointed his bushes at the Drapion, releasing a rapid torrent of knife sharp leaves forward. Lapras and Noctowl followed, spitting waves of water and sound which combined into a glowing whirlwind of energy that swallowed the Drapion whole.

Her scream almost deafened Lucas, sending a painful chill through his bones and forcing him to cover his ears. He felt bad for the poor thing until he remembered that she was currently trying to kill him.

Then he felt bad again for a little bit, because he really couldn't help it.

The dust cleared after a few seconds, and Lucas' veins turned to ice. The Drapion was not only free of her bindings but stood just as proudly as she did before, not more than a few superficial scratches covering her body. The only difference was the venomous, burning fury clear in her eyes, directed straight at him. She opened her maw and let out a scream which pierced the air, turning his legs to jelly.

"A-a-attack it!" he yelled, walking backwards as fast as his feet would allow. "Keep it away!"

Sierpinski had to stop him from tripping into the lake by grabbing the back of his shirt with his mouth. In front of him, his remaining Pokemon let out another torrent of attacks, which Drapion swiftly dodged by jumping to the side as if the previous barrage had done little more than tickle her.

Tiresias chirped loudly at the beast and threw herself down with all her strength, landing on her back with enough force to make her knees buckle. Without wasting a second she started pecking at the Drapion's face fiercely while Archimedes tried to bind her once more with his vines.

For a single, short moment Lucas thought they might have a chance. Then he noticed the beast's fangs steaming as they turned a burning red, and his heart dropped. He opened his mouth to yell a warning but it was too late.

Drapion's head turned 180 degrees, and before the Noctowl had a chance to dodge she felt her body being enveloped by her maw. Sharp teeth dug into her flesh as she desperately tried to free herself, pecking at her eyes with all her might. But before she could do any lasting damage the teeth enveloping her caught ablaze.

Her shriek of pain filled the entire lake. She only remained conscious for a couple heartbeats, before her head fell backwards, immobile.

Lucas stared in horror as the beast spit the unconscious body of his Pokemon to the ground, where the impact raised a cloud of dust around her. Several dark spots stained her feathers, in the points where the fangs had dug into her.

Drapion let out a sound which could've passed for a snicker, and turning only her head she set her red eyes on Lucas. The boy froze completely, while his two remaining Pokemon covered him and growled at the beast to stay back. It didn't.

She dived forward with another burst of speed, appearing on top of them and coating her claws with a powerful dark energy. She slashed at Archimedes' side with ruthless strength, flattening him against the ground. She then raised her other hand and threw it forward towards Lucas' neck. He closed his eyes and waited, resigning himself to his fate.

A scream broke through the air, startling everyone in the lake.

"Flash Cannon!"

Drapion looked up to what she first thought was the sun, though after a moment she realized the light she was staring at was getting bigger and bigger. A gasp escaped her mouth as a torrent of white energy swallowed her and drew a scream of agony from her throat.

Lucas stared dumbfounded as the floor exploded in front of him. Drapion's body was thrown backwards with astounding strength, landing on top of the frozen ground with enough force to break it apart. She did not move again.

"Oh thank goodness, you're okay!"

His brain now a pile of mush, Lucas raised his head towards the voice. Floating above him and slowly descending was the weirdest Pokemon he'd ever seen. It looked like a giant blue bell with two flat arms coming out of its sides. Two red protrusions came out of the lower part of its body, what appeared to be its eyes. But strangest of all was the hole under it, which revealed its body to be completely hollow.

A person stood on top of it. A tall, slim man with blue hair which went up in a crescent shape. Something about his white and black uniform looked so familiar to Lucas, though he had trouble identifying.

The man jumped from his Pokemon and landed in front of him. His deep blue eyes reflected clear worry.

"Are you hurt?" he asked, voice thin and brittle. "When your beacon appeared in my Pokétch and I saw where you were… I came here as fast as I could!"

Lucas had trouble responding, partly due to the state of shock he was still in and also because he was somewhat drawn in by the man's handsome features. He couldn't be much older than him, a couple years at most. His face was round and his cheeks somewhat rosy, and the nervous smile across his face made the boy blush. At least until his gaze averted from him and fell on the unconscious body of his Noctowl.

"T-Tiresias!" he yelled, pushing the man aside as he ran towards his Pokemon. "She's hurt! That thing bit her and... and…"

The man stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder. Without saying a word walked towards the wounded Pokemon and kneeled next to her. He put his hands on her side and started to inspect the dark spots on her body.

"Wh…" Lucas whispered, lower lip trembling. "What are you doing?"

He didn't respond, completely focused on his task. He moved the stained feathers a few times, taking a closer look at the wound as the Noctowl growled in her unconscious state. After a few seconds he sighed in relief and smiled.

"That Drapion used Fire Fang, didn't she?"

Lucas was caught off guard by the question, but he nodded slowly.

"Thought so. You were lucky." He put a hand over his knee and pushed himself to his feet. "The fire that coated her fangs not only momentarily killed the venom but it also cauterized the wound shut. Your Noctowl will be okay, though you'll need to take her to a Pokemon Center."

Lucas couldn't help but let out a sob of happiness that also kind of sounded like a cough. He lowered his head as he tried to hide his tears and took Tiresias' Pokeball in his hand, returning her to it.

He got up and bowed to the stranger, "T-thank you so much! I don't know what I would've done if…" he gulped, the words getting caught in his throat. "Also… sorry for the trouble and um… not introducing myself. I'm Lucas."

The stranger let out a sweet, dorky laugh, "Don't worry about it. You were understandably worried about your Pokemon, and to me that makes you worth saving already." He extended one of his hands forward, which Lucas shook a bit too enthusiastically. "You can call me Saturn. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Another flash of familiarity crossed his mind. Something about the man's name and his outfit… it was somewhat familiar and filled his chest with an uncomfortable feeling that he couldn't place. Though he didn't have much time to think about it as Saturn addressed him again.

"Excuse me, do you mind if I…?" he pointed at the unconscious body of the Drapion, and took out a Pokeball from his pocket. "Were you planning on catching her? Because if not, I could really use someone this powerful for my team."

Lucas shook his head weakly, taking a few steps back from the sleeping beast.

"I don't want anything to do with that thing," he declared. "You can have it."

He smiled brightly and threw the device at the Drapion's chest, which enveloped her in a red glow and turned her body into light, trapping her inside. The Pokeball shook three times before closing with an electronic beep. With grace the man kneeled to grab it and hung it from his belt before walking towards Lucas again.

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you doing here?" he looked around, taking in the remnants of the battle. "Didn't you hear that strange things have been happening around the lake lately?"

"I came to study just that," he replied as he returned Archimedes and Sierpinski to their Pokeballs. "I wanted to come up with a theory as to why the lake turned so cold, but…" he sighed and looked at the broken piece of frozen ground where the Drapion stood a few seconds before, "I never expected to run into… that."

"Well, they're certainly not native to Lake Valor," nodded Saturn. "This Drapion probably came here from the Great Marsh down south. There have been unusual Pokemon sightings around the place in the last few months."

Lucas' shoulders dropped, "Yeah, that's what I heard too. But it doesn't make sense… what could cause such a drastic change?"

There was a heavy pause, one that set over the boy's shoulders in the same way as Saturn's eyes. The tall man stared at him for a few seconds, a puzzling look shadowing his face. Lucas felt the weight of his stare and couldn't help but take a careful step back.

He tapped his feet against the ground rhythmically, arms crossed and eyebrows knit together. He seemed to be deliberating something, and judging by the seriousness of his expression it looked to be a matter of life and death.

"Lucas…" he finally spoke, his tone startling him, "tell me, have you heard of the legend of the Lake Guardians?"

The question caught him more than a little off guard. Out of all the things he expected to hear from Saturn a question about legends wasn't one of them, especially since he seemed like a man of science. It wasn't like Lucas wasn't accustomed to or interested in myths, but he simply didn't care about them as much as cold, concrete facts.

"I… think so, yes," he nodded weakly. "Azelf, Mesprit and… Uxie, right?"

Saturn nodded, "Yes, exactly. Do you know their story?"

"Their story…" he deliberated for a second, trying to remember what he'd read long ago. "If I remember correctly… it was said that they were created by Arceus when the world came into being, and each of them holds one of the pieces to the human spirit… or something like that."

Saturn's eyes brightened at the sound of his words, as if he couldn't be more delighted he remembered the myth correctly. The sight of such a smile forced the boy to lower his head, cheeks flushed.

"And you know what happened after?" he prompted, raising his hand palm up.

"I…" Lucas bit his sleep, drawing a blank. "N-no, I don't think so."

He saw the man clap his hands together, as if he'd received the opportunity of a lifetime.

"Once the guardians gave their gifts to humanity they were ordered by Arceus to rest, until their power were needed once more," he smiled widely. "Mesprit settled west of what one day would become Twinleaf Town, and with its incredible power it carved a gigantic crater in the middle of the forest and made the humans build a temple for it to sleep in. Azelf and Uxie followed their sibling's example, choosing northeast of Pastoria and west of Snowpoint respectively for their new homes."

Lucas narrowed his eyes. Those giant craters… he couldn't possibly mean…

Saturn couldn't help but smile at the dumbfounded expression of the boy. It wasn't just any day he got to impress someone with this information.

"That's right; as the centuries passed rain and storm filled the craters until they became Lake Verity, Lake Valor and Lake Acuity. It also eroded the temples built in the guardians' honor, turning them into the mysterious caves that lay at their center."

Lucas was entranced by his story, even if part of his mind doubted the veracity of it. Still, the clear passion behind his words, the way his eyebrows knit together and his fingers curled into fists as he spoke… he couldn't help but feel somewhat enamored by it.

"T-that's amazing…" he whispered. "But… what does that have to do with what we were talking about?"

Saturn looked at both sides, a scowl forming on his face as if he were wary of someone listening in on them. After a few seconds he got close to Lucas (a bit too close for his liking) and looked at him with the most serious expression he could muster.

"Can you keep a secret, Lucas?" He put a hand on his shoulder, squishing it lightly. "I'm not supposed to talk about this, but after meeting you here today…" he smiled, "I feel like I can trust you."

Lucas let out a faded gasp of excitement, "I promise I won't tell anyone!"

He gave Lucas one last, thoughtful look as he took a deep breath and gathered his words. If someone were to find out he slipped such sensitive information… no, he wouldn't let such a thought dismay him. The kid was exactly the sort of person they needed, and he wouldn't let such an opportunity pass.

"I'm part of… well, you could call it a nonprofit organization," he looked at the ground, thinking over his words carefully. "We work all over Sinnoh with the express purpose of making this world a better place."

Lucas raised an eyebrow unconsciously, and Saturn couldn't help but laugh.

"I know it sounds… inane," he admitted. "But I can assure you we and our objectives are serious. For years we've been doing everything in our power to right the wrongs done to this region."

Lucas' fingers twirled as he listened carefully, eyes opened like plates.

"I didn't mean to insult you," shame crept up his body as he spoke. "I just… didn't know a group like that existed in Sinnoh."

Saturn's chest puffed with pride at the kid's words, and a somewhat smug expression landed on his face.

"We only want what's best for everyone," he scratched his cheek. "If you had the chance to change this world for the better, wouldn't you grab the opportunity by the horns like a Bouffalant?"

Lucas stood quiet, unsure of how to respond. He'd never thought about his dreams in the same vein as trying to make things better for people, even if his actions would lead to something like that. The pursuit of his own desires had always come first, which sounded really bad now that he had stopped to think about it.

He remembered Inyssa and Barry, and the way they'd inspired him to begin his journey, even if they didn't mean to. He smiled, grabbing his chest with one hand.

"I feel like I should try to help people by doing what I like," he told Saturn, voice firm and determined. "Most of the bad things that happen around the world are caused by lack of information. People make terrible decisions because they don't have enough data to guide their actions, and everyone around them ends up suffering because of that…"

Saturn listened to him carefully, somewhat taken aback by his elaborate response.

"I started working for Rowan because I wanted to learn the secrets of this world…" he looked down to his palm, a sad smile across his face. "If I can just learn everything I can and explore at my heart's content… then the information I gather might prevent bad things from happening in the future. That's the way I want to help this world."

A long silence swept across the shore, lasting long enough that Lucas started to fear he'd given the wrong answer. But Saturn simply looked down and smiled wistfully, as if his response had reminded him or something.

"I knew I could trust you…" he whispered to himself. "Very well, I'll share with you what I know. Are you sure you want to learn this information?"

Lucas nodded strongly, and felt the man's heavy gaze on him. He opened his mouth and spoke slowly, barely above a whisper.

"The reason the lake is in such a condition… the reason the Pokemon around here have been acting so aggressively…" Saturn burrowed his frow, his expression turning serious, "that's because Azelf isn't here anymore. It's been stolen."

"Wh-what!?" Lucas' eyes opened wide and his beret fell slightly to the side. "What do you mean stolen? Who could…?"

He stopped when he set his eyes on Saturn. The man's lips were pale and thin and his eyebrows were knit together so strongly he could see all the wrinkles covering his forehead. A shadow of something hidden and dangerous flashed across his face, and for the first time Lucas felt somewhat scared of him.

"One of our former members," he spit the words like they were poison. "She betrayed us and took the guardian for herself, even going as far as killing her friends to escape," he closed his eyes and shook his head, as if what he was saying were causing him pain. "If it weren't for her the bridge leading to Eterna City wouldn't have been destroyed, either."

Lucas' mouth hung slightly opened. He couldn't believe Saturn's words; to think someone would be willing to do something so horrible…

"I'm… so sorry," he lowered his head, avoiding the man's gaze. "That's detestable. That woman… I hope someone catches her soon."

Saturn showed him a warm smile and sighed, his shoulders dropping.

"It's not your fault," he shrugged. "In any case, there's your reason. Azelf exuded power even through its sleeping body, keeping the lake and the forest around it alive. Without it… well, you can see it yourself." He gestured all around, from the frozen shore to the twisted and dry trees surrounding them. "Everything becomes cold and lifeless."

Lifeless was a good way to describe it, Lucas thought. From the first moment he set foot on the forest leading towards the lake he could feel his energy and enthusiasm being sapped from him. Despair clung to the leaves and ground, happy to eat alive whatever came in unprepared.

Rage flared inside his stomach. He couldn't help but hate the unknown woman which turned such a beautiful place into… this.

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud ringing noise, which also managed to startle Saturn. The man looked toward his wrist where a custom version of a Pokétch was located, and narrowed his eyes at the name of the person currently calling him.

"It's from one of my coworkers," he smiled nervously. "I hope you don't mind, it will be just a second."

Lucas stammered around three different responses into a garbled mess of words. Saturn seemed to understand as he nodded and took out a small earphone from the side of the Pokétch, connecting it to his ear.

 

* * *

 

 

The woman stood in the middle of the dark room, Pokétch close to her ear and right hand tapping the fabric covering her hips. A devious smile adorned her face.

"Commander Saturn here," the voice at the other side of the device spoke. "What is it, Mars?"

She allowed herself a few moments of silence, while she raised her hand towards the nearby table and grabbed a photo frame. Three people were depicted in the picture; two young kids and an old, tall man with silver hair.

"Always so professional…" she whispered, her voice sending chills down the spine of the two Galactic grunts standing behind her. "Aren't you happy to hear my voice again?"

Saturn let out a frustrated sigh which she thoroughly enjoyed.

"Can you please get to the point? I'm in the middle of something here."

She rolled her eyes, "You're seriously no fun."

"The point, please."

She set the frame on the table again, shifting her feet over the sticky dark red covering the floor beneath her. The outline of a body could be seen laying next to them.

"Doctor Willow has been taken care of," she said matter of factly. "I've recovered the documents from his private folder. He won't betray us again."

"Excellent. In that case get the files to Charon and…"

"That's not all."

Saturn's voice came to a halt, and Mars couldn't help but smile at the sound of it.

"One of my grunts found the girl," she said. "Turns out she really is in Veilstone after all."

There was a short silence before Saturn spoke again.

"…Understood. I will arrange a team to capture her and…"

"No," she cut him off, tone sharp and rough. "She is mine. I will take care of it."

Another sigh reached her ears, this one just a tad more exaggerated than the last. She knew exactly the meaning of such a sound.

"Very well, I will leave that to you. Report back to base once you're done, and no further transmissions unless necessary."

"Have a nice day, sweetie," she sarcastically whispered as she finished the call.

She threw her arms backwards and put them behind her head, a satisfied smile showing on her lips. After a few seconds she turned around, and her dark red eyes met with her two oldest grunts.

"Dione, Janus, it's time to move out," she ordered. "We have some scores to settle."

 

* * *

 

 

Saturn took the earphone out and sighed, his shoulders dropping.

"Is… is there something wrong?" Lucas asked behind him.

He turned around and formed a gentle smile, "Nothing to worry about, just work related stuff. My coworker can be such a pain sometimes." He took a hand to his hair, ruffling it. "I should probably get back soon, I'm sure I'll have to fill a mountain of paperwork due to her recklessness soon."

Disappointment set on the pit of Lucas' stomach, turning his mouth sour.

"I… I understand," he nodded, trying not to sound too disheartened. "I hope she doesn't make you work that much this time."

"We can all hope," he laughed. "But before I go, I wanted to ask. How are you planning to get back to Pastoria? It's getting late."

Panic filled him as he realized the situation he was in. Both Tiresias and Archimedes were hurt by their fight, and Sierpinski couldn't handle very well on ground. He had no way of getting back safely.

Saturn seemed to understand, and without doubt he looked for something inside his pocket. He took out a black and gold Pokeball, caressing it with his fingers.

"You really should have a Pokemon for this kind of situation," he advised. "Someone who can either teleport or fly you out of trouble."

Lucas lowered his head, ashamed. "I… haven't been able to catch a psychic Pokemon yet, and my Noctowl isn't strong enough to carry me for long."

"Here, catch."

Saturn threw the Pokeball upwards at his face, and Lucas desperately tried to catch it, flailing his arms spastically. His fingers grazed the edges of it and he barely managed to grab it before it fell to the ground.

"Since you let me have that Drapion, I thought it'd be fitting for me to give you something in return," Saturn explained. "That Pokemon will be able to get you safely back to Pastoria. And don't be intimidated by how he looks, he's a total softie.

"W-what!?" he stammered, his heart beating like drums inside his chest. "I can't… I can't accept…"

Saturn raised a hand to interrupt him, sporting an amused smile. "It's okay, he was caught very recently and I already had six members in my team. He'll obey you as if you were his original trainer."

Lucas wanted to protest, but the words wouldn't leave his mouth. After a few heartbeats he simply lowered his head and nodded.

"Thank you so much," he said. "I'll treasure it dearly."

With that settled Saturn turned towards his Bronzong, putting a hand over its metallic body. He looked at Lucas one last time before leaving.

"I'm very glad I got to meet you, Lucas," he said, turning the boy's face completely red. "I'm sure we'll run into each other again."

Lucas nodded so strongly he almost hurt his neck, "Y-yes! I hope we… I mean, I'm sure that will happen, yes!"

The man laughed at his endearing tangling of words, and just before his Pokemon teleported them out of the lake he winked at him.

"Until next time, friend."

 


	27. Carved From Stone

Enma fell to one knee, his legs no longer able to support him. The world became blurry around him. Drops of his blood fell from his face to the dirt beneath, releasing small wisps of steam as they made contact.

Shadows danced at the edge of his vision. Rough, green shapes moving faster than his eyes could follow in his current state. Through his ragged breathing he could hear the metallic, nails on chalkboard sound of scythes sharpening each other.

He took a step forward, protecting the small pile of berries he'd stole from the Scyther's nest. With difficulty he spread his arms to the side and bared his fangs as a warning.

Cowards, that's what the four Pokemon surrounding him were. Cowards who could only defeat him due to number advantage. But he would not let them take his food, not after the trouble he'd gone through to steal it from them.

"Saaai…"

One of them chuckled, and the rest followed soon after. Underestimating him. The thought made the fire on his tail change from a pale red to a burning yellow, fingers curling into fists. He would not be mocked by lowlife creatures such as them.

The temperature of his skin rose dramatically, as small embers started licking at the outline of his body. He could feel that pressure building inside his chest, the same which had consumed him that night and made him turn on his own trainer.

The girl's face flashed through his eyes, and for a moment guilt crept up his throat, almost choking him. He couldn't go back, not after what he'd done. The four Pokemon about to kill him, they were probably his penance for going so far as attacking someone who'd shown nothing but patience for him.

Still, that penance would have to wait until he fixed his mistakes. Until he became strong enough to prove that stupid girl wrong, to show her that no Pokemon would ever best him again.

Until he could give her a low grumble that she might consider an apology.

Until then, he would not die.

The four Scyther threw themselves at him, eyes brimming with bloodlust and blades shining under the pale sunlight. Enma threw his head backwards and screamed, letting out all the rage inside him, his vision turning red just like back then.

His body exploded into a blinding ball of flames.

 

* * *

 

 

 _The City Carved from Stone_ , the sign at the entrance of town proudly announced once Inyssa had gotten to read it. And as she walked alongside Barry towards the Gym, she understood why.

There was a certain, specific feel to the streets and people they passed.  _Faded_  was the first word that came to mind, though that didn't seem quite right.  _Rough_  came next, and while it was more appropriate it didn't tell the whole story either.

The houses looked… compact, so to speak. A lot smaller and simpler than she expected, with nary a tall building to be seen with the exception of the Pokemon Center. She couldn't look anywhere without spotting a bunch of grey warehouses, each of which were being used for wildly different purposes, from stores to deposits to infirmaries.

The people seemed carved from stone as well, she couldn't help but notice. There was a strange brightness to their eyes, especially from the older residents she came across. They looked to be constantly on edge, as if they expected someone to jump out of a trashcan behind them with a knife ready to go at their throats. Some of them had probably gone through that exact situation, or something similar at least.

It reminded her too much of what Twinleaf had looked like right before the war ended. Back when she was too young to understand why her father hadn't come home, why sometimes people from the military knocked on doors and delivered letters to family members, who would then start crying uncontrollably. Why sometimes she'd spot a bunch of people wearing black, headed towards the local cemetery to pay their respects to a grave which contained no body at all.

Veilstone hadn't moved on from that phase, it seemed. Not that she blamed them, especially after how much the city had suffered during the war, what with being the main source of provisions for the rest of the region and being constantly targeted because of that. Still, she couldn't deny the entire place brought her mood down.

She grabbed the edges of her scarf and covered her nose with the white fabric, as she started to walk faster.

"The Gym should be around here," she told Barry, tone dry. "Let's get this over with."

 

* * *

 

 

Barry pushed the doors of the Gym aside, smiling from ear to ear and completely unaware of his friend's current mood.

They opened slowly, what with being made of gosh-darned metal and all, and showed them an inside whichmade them both wonder if they'd walked in on a different kind of gym.

The room they entered was divided into four identical squares, about twenty feet in diameter and surrounded by either chalk or string. Inside them both people and Pokemon sparred, each dressed with a white, long gi tied together with belts of different colors. At the sides and in between were sprinkled a bunch of weights, backpacks and water bottles.

"So, if I were a guessing girl…" Niss said next to him, arms crossed, "I'd say that this is probably a fighting type Gym."

The corner of his lips curled into a smile, "Wow, you master of observation you."

After a light punch directed towards his arm they made their way through what appeared to be the lobby, skipping over all the stuff sprinkled through the floor and trying to pretend they didn't feel the eyes of the local trainers on them. He could imagine the things they were thinking, what with them dressed in full winter gear inside such a place.

A lean, dark skinned man approached them once they were at the other side of the room, standing in front of the door.

"Are you here to challenge lady Maylene?" he asked, showing a thin smile and raising his hand to shake theirs. "Greetings! I am Marco, her assistant."

For just an assistant he sure had an iron grip, Barry thought as he felt his fingers almost crushed by the shake. And judging by the small yelp of pain and the eye twitch coming from Niss he figured she felt the same way.

"We're just here to talk to her!" Barry rushed to speak before she could strangle Marco with her scarf. "She asked us to come when we had the time."

He grabbed his chin, looking contemplative. His lips parted slightly and another easy smile formed on his lips, "Ah, you two must be the talented trainers we heard about! Barny and Nashandra, right?"

Barry couldn't help but burst into laughter, and next to him Niss narrowed her eyes.

"Barry and Inyssa," she corrected him, tone cold. "But… yes, that's us."

"Such a pleasure to have you here!" Marco clapped his hands together, "Please, please, proceed to the main arena. Lady Maylene is training right now but I'm sure she'd be happy to receive both of you."

Niss muttered something which could've been heard as  _Thanks_  if one were listening very carefully. Without wasting time they both entered through the door, after receiving an enthusiastic pat in the back by Marco which, Barry was pretty sure, broke a couple of his bones.

The door opened to an even bigger arena, about the same size as the one they'd seen in Eterna City. It looked less pristine though, as if the place saw a battle ten times a day instead of once a week.

Barry focused his sight forward, and what he saw made him stop in his tracks. Next to him Niss did the same, as a gasp of surprise escaped her lips. There was a person in the middle of the arena. A tall, young girl with short pink hair dressed in a blue training outfit.

She was fighting a Pokemon. A Hitmochan to be precise, whose gloved fists repeatedly tried to reach the girl's body. She jumped to the side, dodging the first two blows aimed at her head, and as soon as she hit the ground she rotated on the ball of her feet and threw a roundhouse kick at his knees. The Pokemon took a step back and threw another right swing.

Desperation crept through Barry's body as he opened his mouth, leaving not a lot of room for logic.

"Watch out!" he yelled, eyes wide open.

He regretted speaking as soon as he saw the girl turn towards him. The momentary distraction was enough for Hitmonchan to land a good hit on her face. He could hear the awful  _crunch_  even from where he was, a sound which made his heart drop as he saw her fall to the ground.

His legs moved before he realized, and Niss followed soon after. As he approached he saw a couple drops of blood running down the girl's face, and the Hitmonchan who'd just hit her had a clear look of worry.

"A-are you okay!?" He stuttered, hands raised to his side. "I'm… I'm so sorry, I thought…"

"It's okay."

With a low growl of pain she got to her feet and set her eyes on him, cutting his breath short. They were a very light brown, looking almost pink-ish under the strong lights hanging from the ceiling. He saw the dark purple on the bridge of her nose where it had been broken, and the slow stream of blood which ran down her lips to her chin. She kneeled to pick up a white cotton towel from the floor and placed it under her wound, so absentmindedly one might thing this sort of stuff happened often.

"This is why I always tell Marco not to let people in while I'm sparring," she spoke through the fabric of the towel. "Trainers always get the wrong idea and I end up eating a knuckle sandwich."

Niss gulped, "W-we thought you were getting attacked by your Pokemon."

Barry gave her a side glance, and suddenly understood why her face was so pale. It must've reminded her of Enma…

"No need to apologize," the girl raised her callused hand, and he could see the corners of her lips curling at the edges of the white cloth, "if I weren't ready to break my nose every other week I wouldn't be a Gym Leader, would I?

"Is that like… a requisite or…?"

"In any case…" she interrupted him. "You two must be Inyssa and Barry, right?"

They nodded in unison, eyes still glued to the strange girl.

"You sure took your sweet time getting here," she lowered the towel and smiled, lips still stained with blood. "The name's Maylene. Give me a couple minutes to clean this up and we can have our little talk."

Without another word she grabbed a Pokeball from the floor and returned the Hitmonchan to it. She then turned around and walked towards a door at the other side of the arena, leaving both trainers confused and more than a little surprised.

"So…" Niss spoke after a couple seconds, "I'm not like, hallucinating, right? How young did she look?"

"She can't be older than us," he replied, tone incredulous, "and she's already a Gym Leader?"

She let out a scoff of indignation, shaking her head lightly, "There really is no justice."

 

* * *

 

 

The drink Maylene offered them was disgusting. Inyssa scrunched her nose as the sour taste of lemon and cucumber water filled her mouth, and her gulp came not without effort. Sitting in front of her the Gym Leader emptied the glass in a second, letting out a sigh of relief.

"So…" Inyssa spoke, shifting in the plastic chair, "do you usually fight your own Pokemon?"

Maylene smiled, eyes brimming. She'd put a big band-aid on the bridge of her nose, "Sometimes. I find it's a great way to understand the way they act in battle."

"But… don't you get hurt a lot?" Barry asked, concerned.

"I mean… they obviously don't use their full power on me," she shrugged. "Otherwise I'd have more than my nose broken. Still, accidents happen once in a while, as you just saw."

Barry lowered his head in shame and his shoulders dropped, which Inyssa couldn't help but find adorable. A word which she couldn't really attach to the girl in front of her, even though they could be the same age for all she knew.

She reminded her of Reiko, especially in their eyes and the way they constantly frowned, even while smiling. However, while the redheaded trainer could be described as more beefy, Maylene leaned towards what she could only describe as fit and toned. Her arms weren't much bigger than hers, but she was pretty sure the Gym Leader could easily snap her in half with them.

She took a strong bite from an energy bar before speaking, "So… I saw your fights against Fantina. That sure was a…" she leaned her head to the side, as if thinking of the correct word to use, "spectacle."

Inyssa narrowed her eyes, not sure if it was supposed to be an insult.

"What did you think of it!?" Barry bounced excitedly on his seat. "Did you see my rock star outfit!?"

Maylene covered her mouth with her hand, letting out a chuckle, "I… sure saw it, yes. I'm not a huge fan of Fantina's… eccentric way of battling her opponents," a sour smile formed on her lips, "but I have to admit that you two were… somewhat more impressive than average."

Oh, she was definitely trying to get a rise out of them, Inyssa thought. Either that or she was oblivious as hell.

"I'm glad we were good entertainment," she spat back. "But we came here because you called us. What did you want to talk to us about?"

Barry shot her a look which she interpreted as  _Niss, tact!,_ though she could've been imagining things

Maylene gave her a crooked smile, "Gardenia was right, you do go straight to the point every time. I like that." Inyssa scowled at her comment, slightly blushing. "I hate small talk, so I'm happy to oblige. I called you here for an apology, an explanation and a piece of advice."

Inyssa shifted in her seat uncomfortably. She had an idea what the apology was about, and she wasn't sure she was ready to hear it.

"First of all, I want to apologize for what happened during your trek to my city. It was… very unfortunate," she lowered her gaze, and Inyssa wasn't sure if she meant the fever or the fact that Enma attacked her. "I also apologize for not being able to find your Monferno. The trainers under my tutelage tend to train a lot around the outskirts of the city, so I can assure you that if any of them had seen him, I would know."

An aching tug at her heart and Inyssa had to lower her head. She felt Barry's warm eyes on her and his hand found hers. It was firm and soft, just enough to dull the pain the Gym Leader's words caused her.

"Thanks," she replied dryly. "Guess he doesn't want to be found."

She didn't like how clearly her words reflected her mood, especially in front of someone who wasn't Barry. She looked away, shame creeping up on her, and simply waited for the Gym Leader to speak again.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about, actually," she said casually while taking another bite of the energy bar. "It's not my job to explain this to you, but I might as well if that old crook Rowan didn't bother with it." She shook her head and  _hrumphed,_ a clear look of irritation on her face. "Seriously, greatest professor in the region my ass."

Both trainers stared at her in confusion, and Inyssa couldn't decide whether to be thankful that she wasn't taking useless pity on her or offended that she'd just insulted Rowan.

"But… the professor is awesome!" Barry complained. "What do you mean?"

Maylene let out a sarcastic laugh, "He hasn't been anything close to awesome ever since he gave up the title of Gym Leader and dedicated himself to doing boring research and paperwork. And to think I'm related to him…"

Inyssa's eyes went wide, "A… Gym Leader?"

"You're both related!?" Barry yelled in disbelief.

"I… thought you knew," Maylene leaned her head to the side. "Well, doesn't surprise me he wouldn't want to share that information. Yes, Rowan was the Gym Leader of this town before my mother took over, and long before I succeeded her. And yes, we are related. He is my grandfather," she shrugged. "Though I don't personally think it's a big deal."

Inyssa didn't miss the poison behind her words, nor the way what was left of the energy bar crumbled under the grip of her fingers, coating them with that dusty substance which she hated. She could relate to her, at least when it came to the unpleasantness of being unfairly compared to your more talented family members.

"As… I was saying," she continued after taking a deep breath. "Inyssa, your Monferno. I'm guessing his attitude took a change for the worst after he evolved?"

She leaned back, eyebrows knitting together. She'd never considered the possibility, though she remembered Enma being slightly more obedient when he was a Chimchar.

"I… think so, yes," she said.

Maylene moved her lips from side to side, as if she'd known the answer all along, "I'm guessing you know that, until almost two years ago, Charmander was the Pokemon we gave rookie trainers when they wanted a fire type starter."

She nodded, the image of her sister's Charizard flashing through her mind and making the skin on the back of her neck tingle. She hadn't run into a more terrifying beast yet, not even Palmer's Salamance.

"Why do you think that is?" Maylene asked. "Why import an already rare Pokemon all the way from Kanto when we have Chimchar here?"

"Are you actually asking us or is this rethor…?" Barry spoke up.

"This isn't something they'd teach you at trainer school," Maylene interrupted him. "But it boils down to the difference in the two Pokemon's types."

A flick of her tongue and Inyssa felt herself lost again, "What do types have to do with it?"

"Types determine a lot more than what kind of power your partners wield," she explained, curling her fingers together and resting her chin on her palms. "It has been proven that the type of a Pokemon can heavily affect their personality, were they to fail to keep their base instincts in check. There's a reason novice trainers tend to stick to types like grass, water, normal, bug… etcetera." She did a twirl with her fingers. "And it's the reason you'll rarely see one of them with a dragon or ghost type. They're either too proud or too difficult for them to control."

She looked towards the arena, where a few drops of blood still stained the sand, "Fighting types, for example. It is said they are born with a stalwart sense of discipline and a desire to prove themselves. Then, there are fire types…" she looked up at Inyssa when she said that, the soft brown of her eyes making her uneasy. "Reckless, proud to a fault and prone to letting their emotions control them."

The shadow of a smile washed over her lips, and Inyssa had to wonder whether she was talking about fire Pokemon or her.

"I'm guessing you're not a fan," said Barry.

"Oh, I am. Those types of Pokemon can be trained into loyal, powerful companions," she replied. "But it's clear that out of the three options for a starter, fire is the most difficult one to raise."

Realization hit her then, about as ruthlessly as that Hitmonchan dug his fist into Maylene's face.

"Monferno is both those types," she whispered, eyes opening wide.

Barry connected the dots at that point too, breathing in a bit too deeply, "So, you think Enma.."

Maylene nodded, "This is obviously not universal, but when those two types mix the results tend to be… complicated. The fighting type's discipline and restraint is heavily suppressed by fire type's dangerous sense of pride and short fuse. The only thing from the first that remains is their constant desire to be stronger, no matter the cost."

A gust of air escaped her lips, and her heart ached with the memory of that night. The burning anger in those red eyes, the clear contempt directed at her. His firm belief that his own trainer was holding him back…

"The Chimchar evolutionary line is extremely dangerous for a novice trainer to have as their first Pokemon," the Gym Leader's voice startled her. "Which is why they were banned until Rowan pleaded to the Association to change that."

Inyssa gulped, her throat dry, "Why… did he do that? If he knew…"

"He didn't heed my mother's warnings," Maylene bit her lip, letting out a heavy sigh. "The guy's a softie, as scary as he might look. He thought types had nothing to do with a Pokemon's personality, and even if they did he trusted the rookies of Sinnoh to be talented enough to counteract the possible problems that might arise. Of course, that damned Champion agreed with him wholeheartedly, so the ban was lifted."

Another violent tug inside her chest, another shake of her lips and sting on her eyes. So Rowan believed in her, and she'd done nothing but let him down.

The girl seemed to pick up on her expression, "Don't think badly of yourself. They're both wrong," she declared matter of factly. "Sure, the personality traits I just described are nothing more than base instincts, something the Pokemon can usually control and surpass. I've met plenty of Chimchar who were nice and cuddly, with not a pint of aggression in them. But there's always that one outlier…" she sighed and looked at Inyssa. "who embraces their own nature to a dangerous degree."

"Enma…" Inyssa said, voice whisper thin.

"From what I've heard of your starter, that might just be the case. Still, the fact you've been able to keep him at bay for so long is very impressive." She sent a smile her way, one which Inyssa ignored by looking down. "It wasn't meant to last, though. The moment his ability activated it was all over."

Barry narrowed his eyes, speaking for the first time in minutes, "Ability?"

"Oh…" Inyssa bit her lip. She'd forgotten to mention that, "It's… kind of the reason… all that happened. Enma entered some sort of frenzy, and his eyes turned red all of a sudden. The Pókedex said it was something called  _Blaze_."

Maylene nodded, "It's an ability that belongs to a few fire Pokemon, one that makes them stronger the more damage they take." She leaned forward, thin pink eyebrows joining. "That's what the Pókedex says, anyways. There's a little detail it fails to inform, one that the Association doesn't want rookie trainers to know. You've seen it firsthand Inyssa, didn't it remind you of something?"

Reminded her of… Inyssa blinked a few times, having to mentally go through the events of last week in her head. More flashes, more of that burning red that still clung to her nightmares. Bared fangs, fire being thrown her way and…

There was something else. Something she'd only caught a glimpse of for a single second, when she tried to calm her starter down.

"He looked… afraid," she spoke without realizing, looking up to Maylene. "Like… he was defending himself from me."

She once again felt Barry's worried eyes on her, and unconsciously grabbed onto his hand stronger than before.

"You have good eyes," Maylene smiled. "Your Monferno was scared of losing against an opponent he saw as weaker than himself, so he pushed through his own exhaustion and gave himself to that fear, drawing power from it. The truth of the matter is that  _Blaze_  is as much an ability as it is a weaponized panic attack."

The air seemed to grow thicker as Inyssa heard those words. It all made sense all of a sudden. What she'd forced her own starter to go through…

"I know you must have been blaming yourself for what happened," Maylene told her. "But believe me, no trainer short of an Elite Four member or the Champion could've dealt with the situation better than you did. There was nothing you could have done to prevent him attacking you."

Inyssa bit down on the heat boiling just beneath her surface, bubbling and growing and making the inside of her skin itchy. She didn't need pity from Maylene, she didn't need it from anyone.

"Which brings me to my last point," she spoke again. "It is possible that your Monferno is out there somewhere, ashamed of what he did and scared to face you. It's also possible that he's still angry at you. Whatever the reason for his absence, you have a choice in front of you." Her gaze went to Inyssa's belt. "As long as you have his Pokeball with you, your Monferno will remain yours and he won't be able to be caught by any other trainer. It also means you'll be stuck with at best five members of your team unless you either find him or you put his Pokeball in the deposit system."

Inyssa didn't like one bit what the Gym Leader was implying, if the furious beating of her heart was anything to go by. She didn't want to hear it either, but she really had no choice in the matter.

Maylene breathed deeply and said the words she was fearing, "You also have the choice of breaking his Pokeball. This would mean he is no longer yours and would turn him into a wild Pokemon again. It will also let you have a sixth member of your team again, were you to catch one." A warm look of pity was sent Inyssa's way. "I won't tell you what I think you should do. I just wanted you to know that what happened wasn't your fault, and you have the option to start again if you so wished. I could even convince Rowan to give you a Charmander, if you'd like."

Inyssa's palms fell on the table, creating a deaf thump which startled Barry and prompted Maylene to raise an eyebrow. She pushed herself to her feet, head lowered. Fingertips turned white as she pushed them strongly against the white plastic.

"Thanks for the offer," she said, voice plain as a grey wall, "but I'm not interested in getting a handout or pretending I didn't make any mistakes by releasing Enma."

Maylene opened her mouth to speak, to probably tell her that what had happened wasn't her fault, but Inyssa interrupted her.

"I appreciate that you're worrying about me, but you don't need to give me any excuses for me to latch onto," she continued. "You said no one short of the Champion could've handled that situation better? Since I will one day bear the title, it means I still failed. You can spin it however you want, but the truth is that I wasn't good enough. But next time will be different…" she curled her fingers into fists. "I'll find Enma. He's still my partner and I'm gonna make it up to him. I'll prove to him that I'm worthy to be his trainer."

A couple dozen heartbeats passed, with two sets of light brown eyes set on her. Barry's felt the gentlest, a gust of warmth which let her breathe steadily under Maylene's, which were piercing her without anything resembling mercy or restraint.

She looked down after what felt like a minute, and Inyssa couldn't help but sigh in relief. The Gym leader stood up as well, and smiled at her.

"That's the kind of answer I expected from someone like you," she said, tone not quite revealing if she considered that a good thing. "I'll respect your decision, and let you take care of the situation."

"Thank you."

Barry stood up and sent a smile her way, all sweet and full of soft things that stuck to Inyssa's chest and sent tingles through her body.  _I'm proud of you_ , his eyes seemed to say.

"Alright then…" Maylene threw her arms behind her head, stretching. "Now that's taken care of, should we start?"

The tender moment between the two trainers was somewhat ruined by their confusion at her words. They both raised an eyebrow in unison.

"The… the Pokemon battle," she explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You think I just called you here for a relaxing talk? I need to warm up my knuckles somehow!"

The sudden excitement in her voice startled them, and the somewhat unhinged smile she showed certainly didn't give them an incentive not to take a step back.

"Hold on..." Inyssa put her hands between her and the Gym leader, gulping. "We… we didn't come here for a Gym fight! We're not ready to…"

"Oh, I know that," Maylene shrugged. "This won't be an official battle, I just want to get to know both of you better," she smiled and put both hands on her hips. "And the best way to do that is to exchange blows with someone! Though unfortunately not many people are martial artists, so I gotta settle for a simple Pokemon fight."

There didn't seem to be a lot of room for refusing, not when the young Leader's terrifying expression fell on them with the weight of a mountain. Both trainers felt a shiver up their spine and stood up straight, looking at each other worriedly. Without saying another word Maylene walked towards the arena, taking a Pokeball out of her pocket.

"We'll start with you, Inyssa," she said with her back to them. "Go to the other side and present to me your best combatant."

She did as she was told for once. Even though she could still feel the remnants of her sickness tugging down at her legs and sending waves of weakness through the rest of her body, she did her best to appear confident as she stood at her side of the arena.

_My best combatant…_

Her hand moved before she consciously made a choice. The light of the Pokeball made her eyes flinch, and from it emerged the silhouette of Shadi, standing tall and proud with her sharp scythes at her side.

"Good choice," Maylene nodded from her spot, smiling. "Since you're showing me your best Pokemon, I will do the same."

The beast which emerged from Maylene's Pokeball looked Inyssa's way, and she felt his eyes shaking her to her core.

He looked like a bipedal, anthropomorphic dog with black and blue fur covering most of his body. Spikes grew from his chest and the back of his forepaws, and the black fur over his face almost made it look like he was wearing a bandana. Without realizing Inyssa took the Pókedex out of her pocket and pointed at the beast with it.

_Lucario: The Aura Pokemon - Fighting/Steel Type. It can sense the life energy, emotions and mental state of every living being in a half a mile radius. It doesn't rely on its sight, as it can detect its opponents even with its eyes closed. Its fighting style can be described in one word: ruthless._

_Well that seems a little excessive_ , Inyssa thought through her dazed state. She'd never felt a Pokemon's overwhelming power hit her so hard, especially not from such a distance nor having said Pokemon not move a single inch yet. Maylene seemed to realize this.

"You picked up on the difference in strength right away, huh? You really are something else. When I said he was my strongest I wasn't joking; he is miles above any of your Pokemon in terms of power, which is why I wouldn't use him if this were an official battle," she made the Pokeball spin on her index finger. "I will give you a small advantage though. My Lucario will not use any special attack, instead he'll rely only on his physical prowess alone to defeat you."

Inyssa forced herself to let out a laugh of annoyance, one which did its best to push against the uneasiness swallowing her body.

"You shouldn't underestimate me," she growled. "Shadi, X-Scissor!"

Her roar imbued the Kricketune with strength, and free of all doubt she threw herself at her opponent, scythes brimming with energy.

The battle lasted less than a minute, and it wasn't pretty to watch. The Lucario's body disappeared in a flash as Shadi's scythes reached him, and before her feet could land he buried his fist on her stomach, sending the poor Kricketune about twenty feet towards Inyssa, raising a cloud of dust where she fell.

She got up and tried again, but no matter what kind of attack or strategy Inyssa tried to come up with the Lucario would simply dodge the scythes without any effort at all and deliver a devastating punch in response, which itself felt somewhat restrained.

Something was wrong, Inyssa realized instantly, and it had nothing to do with either of the Pokemon fighting. She could feel her own mind working slower than usual as she tried to force herself to come up with a plan to win the battle. She was lost, her thoughts scattered and her will fading.

Shadi's legs lost strength as she fell for the last time, losing consciousness even before she hit the floor. Shame creeping through her throat, Inyssa returned her to her Pokeball, fingers white from grabbing it so strongly. She looked up to Maylene and expected a witty remark or a mocking laugh or anything; instead she was met with a curious look and a slow nod.

"Alright…" she said as her eyes set on the boy at the right side of the arena. "Barry, you're next."

His battle went only slightly better than hers. Pedri managed to hold off the Lucario's overwhelming offensive for about two minutes before succumbing to it. His sturdy body allowed him to counterattack after each punch, and while he did no significant damage he was able to land a single cut on his cheek. A whistle of surprise came from Maylene as it happened.

Barry similarly lowered his head in shame as he returned his starter, and Inyssa couldn't help but feel bad for him. She walked towards her friend and put a hand over his shoulder.

Without a single word between trainer and Pokemon Maylene returned Lucario to his Pokeball, and walked towards them with an expression of relief.

"That was just what I needed for a warm up," she smiled, feeling the weight of the trainer's angry eyes. "What? I said you had no chance of winning. Still, I'm impressed you managed to hold out as much as you did."

She crossed her arms, grabbing onto her own biceps with grip of steel. Her eyebrows knit together all of a sudden, and her expression changed to one of seriousness.

"You still have a lot to learn, though," she said. "Inyssa, your Kricketune seemed to trust you fully, but her technique lacked a lot of polish. A full two seconds to charge each attack? That's ludicrously slow, especially for someone who's already gotten through three Gyms already." She grabbed her chin and looked down contemplatively. "I presume your mind is and has always been your strongest weapon when it comes to battling. That's nice, but in situations like these where your thoughts are clouded, your Pokemon are left in a bad situation since they have to fend off with their strength alone, which is not enough."

She couldn't contain the murderous look she gave Maylene, even if deep down her words ringed true.

"You haven't been training much lately, have you?" she asked, and Inyssa figured it was rhetoric. "It shows. If you're as serious as you say you are about becoming the Champion the you need to train your Pokemon at least six days a week and in a more serious manner. With the exception of that little ghostie, all your Pokemon seemed pampered to."

 _Okay, that's fucking offensive_ , the fire inside her chest said as Inyssa curled her fingers into fists. Without paying any mind to it Maylene turned towards Barry.

"As for you," she told the boy, making him flinch with her eyes only. "Your Pokemon are physically stronger and faster than hers, which I'm sure comes from the unique way in which you train them. However, your style of battling was too simple, and you seemed to be holding back the whole time."

Barry gulped and looked down, embarrassed by the sermon he was receiving.

"It seems you could both learn some things from each other," she smiled. "That's another one of the reasons I called you here. I'm willing to give both of you a training routine specifically built for your Pokemon. I know you're not planning on being here forever. Still, I'd say that a week under my wing should be enough to give both of you a fair chance at beating me."

They were both taken aback by her proposal, especially Inyssa. She stood still for a few seconds, wondering if she'd really heard what she said correctly.

"Why are you trying to help us so much?" she couldn't help but ask.

Maylene laughed. A short, high pitched laugh which made it seem like she'd heard something either too funny or too stupid.

"I thought Fantina explained it to you already," she shook her head, still smiling. "I'm a Gym Leader. My job is to do everything in my power to make you leave this town stronger than you were when you came in. And…" she winked. "I do admit, I'm slightly biased after watching your match against her, and after hearing your response earlier. Sue me."

After saying those words she let out the deepest sigh of relief Inyssa had ever heard, and her shoulders dropped as if a mountain had been lifted from her shoulders.

"Oh my god, I am not used to speaking so much," she chuckled. "I'm gonna need a couple liters of water after this, my mouth is so dry. Still, I gotta do what mom did before me and help you guys out, right?" she asked, as if she couldn't fathom them saying no. "I hope I did a good job. I've been a Gym Leader since the start of the year only, and it's a lot harder than I expected."

Inyssa really didn't know what to say. She was overwhelmed by Maylene's strangely positive attitude towards them. It felt heavier and more genuine than Fantina's, especially since the girl was their age and gained nothing from pretending to like them for publicity.

She didn't need to give a response though, since Barry did that for her.

"I think you're doing an amazing job already," he said, tone sweet and full of warmth. "Right, Niss?"

He turned around towards her, brimming with excitement. His shoulders were almost at the height of his ears and his hands were closed into fists as he smiled. It wasn't the first time she'd seen him do something like that, and the memory turned her frown upside down.

She put a hand behind her neck and returned the smile, "Well, I like you more than Fantina and Roark, if that means anything to you."

"We'd be happy to train with you!" Barry nodded energetically, "There's a lot of people who also believe in us and we're not gonna let them down! We're gonna become the Champions!"

Barry's vigor was so contagious that Inyssa felt the weakness clinging to her bones disappear as she stared lovingly at him. She gave another slow, thoughtful nod and locked eyes with Maylene.

"Fine, we'll be your students for a week," she nodded. "You better not waste my time."

 

* * *

 

 

Metchi almost walked into a tree while angrily muttering under her breath, eyes set on the papers she'd stolen.

She'd been making her way through Route 210 for a couple hours, panting under the strong sunlight which made her regret having her black hoodie on her. The shade of the leaves above barely managed to keep her fresh enough to continue, though they weren't very useful with helping her read what was in front of her.

"It's hopeless." She threw her hands to the air, almost sending one of the papers flying. "I've been studying this shit for hours and I can't make anything of it."

_"We need to decipher those papers. They hold the secret to their plans."_

"And you think I don't know that!?" she complained to the air. "I'm not a goddamned scientist, I'm not smart enough to figure this out on my own!"

_"That is obvious."_

A pant of anger escaped her lips, "You know you could at least look me in the eye if you're gonna talk shit."

Azelf didn't reply, and Metchi sighed as she put the papers back in the brown folder. So much for a fucking lead. The weight of her responsibility felt even heavier on her shoulders, to the point where she had trouble even walking.

If only she had someone else to rely on who wasn't a disembodied piece of shit. Literally any kind of ally would've been preferable to her current situation. Not that she'd let anyone embark on the same dangerous path as her, of course. She wasn't that heartless.

_"I believe I have an idea, though it's dangerous."_

Metchi couldn't help but laugh. Par for the fucking course.

"Spit it out," she said. "Can't be worse than what we've been through already."

_"Getting a hold of Charon or Jupiter might be the only chance we have of deciphering those blueprints."_

"We already tried that, and I'm sure you remember how well that went," she unconsciously put a hand over her stomach. "We'd need a lot more power than what we have right now to break through the research center and kidnap them."

_"I was getting to that, Metchi. Do not interrupt me."_

She smiled at the feeling of irritation coming from her partner.

_"It's been a long time since my soul and my body were together, and because of that I'm losing strength at an alarming rate. But if I could get back in my body, even for just a second, it would recharge my soul enough to give us a fair chance at storming the place where Charon and Jupiter are located."_

Metchi knit her eyebrows, "Your body is still chained in the middle of Lake Valor, remember? I'm sure Team Galactic has some heavy security around it."

_"It's a risk I'm willing to take."_

Uncertainty set on the pit of her stomach as she considered her partner's words. Not only could they be walking right into a trap but she might be forced to not only hurt but kill even more Galactic grunts, were the place well guarded.

_"As you saw, at least Saturn is currently busy chasing that girl. This is our best chance to sneak into Lake Valor."_

If Azelf wanted to make her feel better then it was pretty fucking horrid at it. The only thing she could think about now was the unknown fate Team Galactic had planned for Inyssa, and possibly Barry. She'd hated herself enough already when she decided not to go wherever she was and warn her. She couldn't; Veilstone was too close to Galactic HQ and there was a big possibility she'd be captured.

That of course didn't stop her from feeling like shit about it.

"Fine," she said, tone weak. "Guess we better start heading for Pastoria."

She was about to turn around and head east when she noticed something at the edge of her sight. She stopped suddenly and focused her eyes on the shape laying at the edge of the route.

It looked like a small creature, with orange fur and a long tail which was set on fire at the end of it. Said fire was an almost snuffed out ember. The Pokemon's body was covered in blood.

"Oh my god…"

She ran towards him without even thinking about it, hearing Azelf's sigh in her mind. She kneeled in front of the Pokemon and put a hand on his chest. He was still breathing, but barely.

"Shit, shit…" she whispered to herself. "Azelf, I need some of your power to close his wounds!"

_"Metchi, this is a tremendously inefficient use of my powers, especially when…"_

"Oh can it already!" she yelled. "You can get me to ignore people all you like, but I'm not gonna let a Pokemon die if I can help it!"

She turned the Pokemon around and saw his face for the first time. He looked so familiar...

With barely any difficulty she summoned the warmth behind her eyes again, and put both hands over the Monferno's chest.

"Come on buddy…" she whispered, attempting to form a smile. "I'm gonna have you fixed up before you know it."

"


	28. Riddles And Red-less

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will be the first chapter to feature a flashback, which I will mark with 》 and 《 at the start and end of them.

**》** Home sweet home was a phrase Shadi had never fully understood, not when the world sat out there, waiting for her unexplored. But back in Twinleaf after almost half a year, belt heavier with Pokéballs, she couldn't help but breathe in longingly the scent of the cold, clean air of her town.

"This is… beautiful," Ciro spoke behind her, the shadow of a smile on his lips. She could see the excitement in his eyes past his pair of glasses.

"Cold, too," the blue haired woman at her right added, mist escaping her mouth. "But damn is it pretty."

She turned around to smile at them, but a scream broke through the peaceful morning silence.

"Shadi!"

She barely had time to react before something small crashed against her. The young girl put both arms around her torso and almost threw her to the ground with the strength of her hug. Tears were slowly forming on her bright green eyes.

The girl behind her let out a low chuckle, "Jeez, talk about an Ursaring hug."

Shadi smiled wistfully as she put a hand over her little sister's head, patting it weakly.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming!?" Inyssa protested, unwilling to let go of her. "I could've told Barry to cook something for us!"

 _Already bossing your friend around?_  Shadi thought to herself and tried to stifle laughter.

"I wanted it to be a surprise," she said as she returned the hug. "I told you I'd come back on my way to the sixth Gym, didn't I?"

The miniature Dawn finally broke away from the hug and cleaned off the wetness in her eyes with her sleeve. Her expression shifted so fast Shadi couldn't help but be somewhat startled, and she suddenly felt herself at the receiving end of her fiery look.

"Show me all the Pokemon you caught!" she yelled, hands curled into fists and a huge grin on her face. "Do you have a Charizard already? How did you win your badges? Did you catch something for me!?"

Shadi took a step back and laughed nervously at the barrage of questions. Her two friends couldn't help but feel amused at the sight of their stalwart friend so flustered by such a young girl.

"I can see the family resemblance already," Ciro whispered under his breath.

Inyssa looked at him with the same expression.

"Who are you!?" she pointed at both of them. "Are they your rivals!? What Pokemon do they have!?"

"Jeez kid, take it easy!" The blue haired girl put both hands in front of her. "Name's Siffa, but you can call me Sif. And we're just regular, boring friends with this mess over here," she pointed with her head towards Shadi.

"I'm Ciro, it's a pleasure!" The man leaned forward and shook Inyssa's hand gently. "You must be the Inyssa we've heard so much about."

Her mouth formed a perfect  _O_ , and her eyes shone brightly.

"You heard about me!?" she gasped, voice almost breaking.

Shadi put a hand behind her messy hair, cheeks flushing, "I told them about you, dummy."

Inyssa's feet bounced slightly, as if she were to start jumping in place.

"Then you already know who to look out for!" She punched the air forward with her tiny fist. "I'm Inyssa and I'm gonna be the best trainer in the world!"

Shadi and Ciro laughed at the young girl's adorable behavior, but Sif simply smiled and kneeled in front of her.

"Being a Pokemon trainer ain't easy you know," she said, one eyebrow raised. "And we're some of the best Sinnoh has to offer; are you sure you wanna mess with us?"

Inyssa put both hands on her hips and puffed her chest up, determination flashing in her eyes.

"I'm gonna kick your butt!" she declared proudly. "So just wait until I'm eighteen cause you're gonna see what a true Champion is like!"

"Niss!" Shadi whispered angrily. "Tact, please!"

Sif swatted the air with one hand, "Don't listen to this stick in the mud, Niss. I believe you."

She seemed surprised by that, as if the blue haired girl had been the first adult to actually take her words seriously.

"R-really?" she asked, her voice becoming thinner.

"Of course!" Sif shrugged. "I could feel you challenging me from the moment our eyes met, and you don't even have a Pokemon! You'll make a fantastic trainer."

Now she did start to jump in place, barely containing a gasp of glee at the woman's words. Ciro stared lovingly at his girlfriend, while Shadi rolled her eyes. Of course she'd be the one to say that.

Without paying any mind to them Sif took a hand to her head and grabbed the white, wool hat which covered most of her blue hair. She looked at it for a few seconds before offering it to the young girl.

"Here, you can have this," she whispered, smiling. "You see the pink Pokeball symbol on it? That's the mark of a trainer, and it now belongs to you." She raised a hand and turned it into a fist. "Think you're up for the task?"

Inyssa stared wordlessly at the hat, hands shaking from excitement. She tried to put it on but realized it was just a tad too big for her, and it covered part of her eyes.

"Yeah, I am!" she yelled, still wearing the oversized hat. "Thank you so much, Miss! I promise I'll become the best trainer ever!"

Shadi stared at the exchange between them, and tried her best to smile.

However there was something strange about the atmosphere around her, a peculiar cold that had nothing to do with the town or the wind brushing past her. Something which traveled past clothes and skin and set in the pit of her stomach, turning her throat dry.

She had a bad feeling, and she couldn't quite shake it off.  **《**

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa thought she was ready for the kind of training Maylene had prepared. She'd accepted it all high and mighty, sporting a wide grin like someone who knew what she was getting into.

The first three days had been nothing short of hell for her Pokemon. The regime was built specifically so that they would last just long enough to clear their tasks before collapsing from exhaustion. And collapse they did, so violently that she felt her own heart tugging just looking at it.

Still, she couldn't deny it. The brutal training was slowly but surely bearing fruit.

The wind traveling just outside the city hit her in the back, rustling the grass and making her legs tickle. She stood in the middle of a wide, empty circle, forest at her right and rock formations at her left, carefully observing each of her Pokemon as they approached the end of their daily quota, which was less than a few minutes away.

Shadi stood close to the rock formation, body covered in dirt and sweat. Determined little thing, she slashed at a gigantic stone in front of her, scythes covered in a pale green energy. Her task was to charge an attack in less than half a second and still gather enough power to cut one of those stones in half. So far she'd managed to get through half of it.

Looking towards the forest she saw the white and black blur that was Steven dive through the thick branches. He was to fly from one extreme to the other as fast as he could while not letting himself be touched by anything, not even a single leaf.

However Kuro and Bret's training was the most brutal, since they were the two least accustomed to actual combat. First they worked on their endurance by running laps around the city for an hour, then they took turns attacking the other with either razor leaves or electricity, and whoever was on the receiving end had to dodge a hundred of those attacks in a row. Kuro's record was fifty five, while Bret's was on the low forties.

All of them were making progress, a lot faster than she actually expected. Still, there was a long way to go and they had less than four days to get there. Maylene had put it very clear that she'd only accept her challenge once her Pokemon cleared their specific trials.

 _They can do it_ , she assured herself.  _They've already proved themselves more than once._

The clock struck four and her Pokétch let out a high pitched  _beep,_ startling her out of her thoughts.

The noise was music to the ears of her Pokemon, who fell to their knees as if their souls had left their bodies. Steven appeared from between the threes and flapped weakly towards her, chest rising up and down with his heavy breathing.

"Alright everyone, that was a lot better than yesterday!" She clapped her hands and tried to form the brightest smile she could. "Steven, you're getting so close! I know you'll only need a few more tries to succeed."

The Staravia's cheeks flushed at her words, and he looked down embarrassed.

"Kuro and Bret, you're both getting so fast! And your reflexes are improving wonderfully." She patted both of them in the head. "And you, Shadi…"

Her praise was cut short as she saw her Kricketune laying face down on the grass, snoring loudly. She'd fallen asleep as soon as the clock struck four.

Pride tugged at something behind her chest. Without a word she knelt in front of her and felt Shadi's forehead with her fingers.

"I'm so proud of you," she whispered. "I promise all this training will be worth it."

She returned them all to their Pokeballs so they could get some well reserved rest. She then approached one of the stones Shadi had been carving and sat on it, letting the wind carry her thoughts away.

She leaned back on the flat surface of the rock, eyes fixated on the clear sky above. There were few if none clouds to be seen, and the strong wind ruffled her hair and threatened with toppling her hat off her head. She took a deep, deliberate breath and closed her eyes for a moment.

_No time to rest. You still have something else to do._

She nodded weakly and unwittingly got to her feet again. Her hand hovered over one of her Pokeballs, the one occasionally zapping her hip with weak jolts of electricity.

"Here goes nothing…" she whispered, and pressed the button.

Light exploded in front of her, and two electric blue eyes emerged from it.

 

* * *

 

 

"Alright, that's enough for now."

Berry fell backwards on his butt and sighed. Mercy, sweet mercy stretched in front of him as he was allowed to take more than two breaths without having to dodge a punch. In front of him Maylene stood proudly, arms crossed and forehead covered in sweat.

"Thank goodness…" he struggled to get to his feet, his entire body aching. "I… I thought we were here to train my Pokemon…"

Maylene raised an eyebrow, "We've been doing that for an hour! Come on Barry, there's nothing wrong with a little bit of sparring here and there." She pulled him up by the hand, smiling. "I did promise I'd be gentle, didn't I?"

Barry muttered something under his breath and rubbed his back with his right hand, a pained expression on his face. Maylene's smile dropped and a sudden flush appeared on her cheeks.

"O-oh… that wasn't like, a euphemism or anything!" she put both palms forward, eyes wide in horror. "I know that it can be confusing when you're into martial arts and sparring but like… nothing wrong with you! I just… I already have a girlfriend and…"

"Yeah, I got it," he grumbled, eyes narrowed. "I just didn't expect to be fighting too."

Maylene lowered her arms and let out a deep sigh. For a moment she looked as grey and loom as the rest of the citizens he'd run into.

"There aren't many people my age around," her shoulders dropped. "And certainly none that are in as good a physical condition as you. Most of my students are adults and they tend to go easy on me just because they think I'm weaker."

"That's… awful," he rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, I'm sure you're strong enough to kick their butts."

She sent a shy smile his way, "Who taught you how to fight anyway? You're kind of sloppy and unrefined as hell but by no means bad. I could turn you into an excellent martial artist if you became my full time student."

Barry let out a nervous laugh, "My mom taught me self defense when I was younger. And… sorry, but I'm not really into fighting as much as you. I like exercising, but not violence."

"A good mindset to have, even if it's somewhat disheartening. Thanks for indulging me anyway." She gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Now, you and your Pokemon should rest. Take a half an hour break and then come back for the next part of training, alright?"

"I'll see if there are any pancakes left!"

Maylene laughed, "Well, if there's anyone who actually needs all the carbs they consume that would be you, Barry. Head off."

He grabbed his backpack along with his four Pokeballs and headed for the exit. Just before he reached the door however he heard Maylene's voice again, a lot firmer and serious than before.

"Oh, by the way…" she crossed her arms again, eyebrows knitting together. "By contract I need to be honest with you. You'll need to work a lot harder on your Pokemon battling skills."

His hand hovered over the doorknob, fingers twitching. He lowered his head slightly and looked at the floor, shame hiding beneath the shadows covering his eyes.

"I know," he said plainly. "I'm working on it."

"I'm only telling you this so you can get better. You're holding yourself back, Barry, you believe yourself to be a lot weaker than what you are." She walked forward, each step resonating inside his head like a drum. "You're unfocused and you're constantly trying to think your way through situations that you should rely on your instincts for. You should think how to resolve this while on your break."

He nodded slowly, and without saying another word he pushed the door aside.

 

* * *

 

 

"Is it okay if we have a chat?"

Inyssa didn't like how her words sounded, how the air left her throat all slowly and full of doubt, disappearing into the loud crackle of electricity that Hao expelled from his body.

His eyes were set on her. Bright and unblinking, to the point where it hurt to stare directly at them. But she had to. She wouldn't be the first to look away.

"I don't know if you've been… paying attention to what's been happening," she continued, swallowing down the gnawing anxiety boiling in her stomach. "Why Enma isn't with us anymore. You tend to keep to yourself, after all."

Absolutely no response. Not even a movement or nod or fucking anything to tell her he was listening. She would've almost preferred the jolts of electricity coming her way.

_Electrocute me once for yes, and twice for no._

Forcing laughter back into her belly she kept speaking, "My point is… I wanted to know what your answer was, about what happened in the fight with Fantina. I promised you I'd do anything you asked, even if…" she gulped, choking on the possibility. "Anyway, just wanted to let you know that you can take me up on that."

A slow, frantic buzz came from his tiny mouth, which sent a shiver through Inyssa's spine. After about five counted heartbeats Hao finally moved, floating down slowly and leaving weak blue flashes behind him. She held her breath and did her best not to turn around and run away as he approached.

He stopped in front of her right hand, and his eyes set on the device in her wrist. Another few buzzes and crackles out of his mouth.

"My… Pokétch?" she raised the thing in front of her. "What do you…"

Realization came to her. A memory floated up from her mind in front of her eyes, from that day in Eterna. A single image; that of Hao's unblinking eyes behind the monitor of that machine.

A small gasp escaped her mouth, "R-right! You went inside the machine, somehow. Can you…" she looked down at the device. "Do you want to… enter my Pokétch?"

Yet another whirr of incomprehensible sounds, which were starting to make her head hurt.

_Really wish I had some frame of reference for this fucking thing._

"Sure, if that's what you w…"

A blink later and Hao had disappeared. She stood frozen for a few seconds, gaze unblinking towards the empty space where her Pokemon was just a moment before.

An electronic beep coming from her Pokétch brought her back to reality. She lowered her sight towards it and saw the screen blinking on and off as apps were opened by someone who wasn't her.

"Hao, I'm doing my best not to freak out here…" she whispered, "and I'd appreciate it if you could tell me what the hell you're doing."

Two warnings simultaneously popped up in the screen, accompanied by two loud beeps.

_Downloading: Knight-Mayres RPG Character Creator._

_Downloading: Chatot's Text to Speech App._

"Wh-" she furrowed her brow, deeply confused. "Hao what are you…"

"Ah, this feels so much better!"

If the blasted Pokétch weren't attached to her wrist she would've sent it flying with how strongly she jumped backwards.

A person had just appeared in her screen, blocking most of the apps and the violet wallpaper. He looked like a tall, handsome anime boy with spiky red hair and electric blue eyes. The outfit he wore was some ungodly combination of a traditional Jothonian kimono and an RPG-like leather jacket with sharp shoulders and a bunch of belts hanging off it.

"What the f…" Inyssa took a step back, not quite realizing that didn't get her far away from what she was seeing. "H-Hao? Is that… you?"

The outlandish boy smiled widely, showing his perfect white teeth. His eyes sent a jolt through her hand towards her entire body.

"The inside of this thing is so much comfier than a Pokéball," he spoke, his voice barely close enough to a human one to be uncanny. "You have no idea."

 

* * *

 

 

The grilled cheese sandwich felt bland and sour in Barry's mouth, which was an unforgivable sin as far as he was concerned.

He finished it without much enthusiasm and kept walking west toward the Pokemon Center. In the way he'd decided to take an alternative route by skipping the main street and staying closer to the unending row of identical grey warehouses. He'd gotten his sandwich from one of them, in fact.

The warehouses were owned by the town council, the nurse had told him a couple days before. To promote local business and become somewhat self renewable they rented the space to anyone who had enough money to pay for it for up to an entire week, so people visiting as tourists could buy a bunch of different things depending on the day they passed through.

That was really cool and all, but Barry wasn't feeling like shopping at the moment, especially when Niss wasn't around. He put his hands in his pockets and pouted.

"Holding myself back…" he repeated Maylene's words, tasting them slowly as they exited his lips. "What does that mean?"

If he could only figure out what part of himself he was holding back, he might have a chance to be as good as Niss. But he honestly had no idea where to start on figuring that out, and the Gym Leader wasn't one for detailed explanations.

_I swear the next person who gives me advice in riddles…_

"Young man!"

A deep, low pitched voice yelled from one of the nearby warehouses. He turned toward it and had to blink a couple times before fully processing what he was seeing.

The only thing in the concrete vault was a single, wooden table with a myriad of strange artifacts on top of it, and behind it sat the one who'd just spoken to him. A garish, tall woman who looked so out of place in that town he almost considered having hallucinated her.

Everything about her was purple, with the exception of her marble-like pale skin. Her long, silk dress with a spider web pattern on the collar, her unreasonably long and incredibly messy hair and even her eyes, which were a pale but unnerving lavender. The wide smile of white teeth on her face did not extend to them, which also looked out of place. She appeared to be in her mid twenties.

"Yes, you!" she yelled, curling her fingers together on top of the table. "Young man, what is your name?"

He looked around, somewhat expecting to see someone else the woman could be referring to. Alas he had no such luck.

"Uh… Barry," he did his best to form a courteous smile. "Nice to meet you."

She tilted her head from side to side, eyes narrowed and lips thin. He couldn't shake the feeling she was studying him carefully.

"Tell me, Barry, is there something bothering you?"

He stared at her for a few beats, "W-what?"

"I can see it in your eyes," she nodded slowly. "There is discord within your mind, and it stills your steps as you walk. Am I wrong?"

He took a step back, feeling something cold run down his back. How did she…?

"Who are you?" he spat back, not liking how hostile his tone sounded. She didn't seem offended by it, since she showed him that lopsided smile once again.

"My name is Sanbica, it's a pleasure to meet you," she winked, revealing the massive amount of black mascara she was wearing. "Now, what do you say? Want me to read your fortune?"

The image became clear then, and Barry let out a tiny gasp of realization. All the different tarot decks and dark leather books on the table, her unnerving appearance and her dramatic tone…

"Oh, oh!" he smiled and jumped in place, voice full of excitement. "You're a Hex Maniac! I knew I recognized your weird look from somewhere!"

The way she flinched at his words almost made him laugh, and he only stopped himself due to her shadowed expression. Sanbica's eyes went as wide as they could and her mouth formed a tiny  _O_. She looked extremely offended.

"Hex M…" she shook her head. "You kids and your nerve… listen to me, I'm a medium! A medium, get it!?" She hit the table with her fist, making the precious stones around it shake. "Hex Maniac is a term that originated in Kalos to make fun of us, and I'd appreciate if you didn't use it in front of me!"

"Whoa!" Barry raised both hands, fearing she'd throw her crystal ball at him or something. "I'm sorry, okay!? I didn't know… I didn't mean to offend you."

Sanbica let her cheek fall on top of one of her palms, still fulminating him with her eyes. The fingers of her remaining hand hit the table rhythmically.

"It's fine," she said, her tone suddenly a lot less dramatic. "Though you could make it up to me by using my services."

Barry deliberated for a few beats. He didn't even know this woman, and his mom had warned him in the past about going to people like her, whom she considered shameless phonies.

Then again there was a strange air about her, and it had nothing to do with her outlandish appearance. Something about the edges of her eyes, the tone of her voice… he couldn't help but feel curious.

He grabbed the other chair by the side and sat in front of her, "Sure, I have some time to burn and I'm not hungry anymore."

"Perfect!" Sanbica clapped her hands and smiled. "Shall we start with some fortune reading, then?"

After a nod she put both hands on top of the table, around the ornate stand where the crystal ball was located. She raised her shoulders and moved them back and forth slightly, excitement clear in her face.

"Let's see what the stars have to say about your future."

She raised her hands and clasped the ball. Her eyelids fell shut and her breathing became slower and more controlled.

The atmosphere changed immediately, and Barry was the only one to realize. He felt pressure coming out of the woman. as if she were tugging at something inside him with will alone. The air grew colder, and the sounds of people walking and talking around him faded to the back of his mind.

A thin drop of sweat fell down his forehead, "Wh…"

" _You'll be in the most danger when you're alone with your own thoughts."_

Her words sent painful prickles of cold through his skin. Her tone had changed completely, and Barry could sense a strange presence behind her voice.

" _Beware the shapeless vanguard, who chases the elusive new moon in furious futility. Your heart will recognize her, even if your eyes don't. Following the child of thorns will carry a heavy price."_

He almost forgot to breathe as he took in the woman's words, which washed over him painfully. His nails unconsciously dug at his palms.

" _The powerful Arecaceae will wither and fall in front of the place where it all began. Move forward and cultivate your own light, for it might save you in the end. Do not let your wrath consume you, or you'll lose more than what you love."_

A few seconds passed, while Barry waited for the rest. However Sanbica opened her eyes, which looked hazy and unfocused, and gave him a weak smile. The cold disappeared, and he could hear the people around him once more.

"So, how was it?" she asked, voice thin. "Did you like my fortune?"

He swallowed hard, "I… didn't understand what you said. What did it mean?"

"No idea."

Barry narrowed his eyes at her, and the woman simply shrugged.

"What. Do you think my fortunes come with an explanation and a diagram?"

"That... would be nice," he nodded.

"Well tough luck, I don't control what the stars say through me," she explained, putting her cheek on her palm again. "I don't know what it means either, but I can assure you it's one hundred percent accurate."

"But… it's nonsense!" He threw his hands to the air. "That's not a fortune, that's a riddle!"

Sanbica rolled her eyes, "That's what real fortunes are, dummy. You're supposed to think about it and figure out what it means on your own."

"Well that's dumb," he decided, leaning back on the chair and crossing his arms.

"Let's see if you think that once it becomes true," Sanbica formed a devious smile. "You should take warnings seriously, Barry. The stars never lie, and your fortune seemed to have a lot of tragedy in it."

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and looked down. Great, just what he needed. Another stupid riddle for him to solve if he didn't want things to be awful forever.

"What else can you do?" he asked, trying to change the subject. "Anything that's not that cryptic?"

Her eyes regained some of their brightness at his words, and clapping her hands excitedly she looked down at all her items.

"Would you like me to throw you some tarot cards?" she asked, smiling.

"Thanks, but that looks even more complicated," he sighed.

"Palm reading?"

"Eh…"

"Crystal purification?"

"That sounds painful."

Sanbica stroked her chin and leaned back into her chair, eyes going through her entire stock.

"Well…" she whispered, looking up at the sky. "I also have the power to see your Guardian Star, but…"

The sheer glee which formed on Barry's face startled the woman.

"Really!?" he leaned forward, almost throwing the woman back. "That, I want that! I always wanted to know my Guardian Star!"

Sanbica let out a nervous laugh and urged him to lean back, since he could've toppled the table at any moment.

Barry had always found the concept fascinating. The idea that the star of one specific Pokemon watched over you ever since the moment of your birth, that they would mirror your personality and always be at your side… he could not help but swoon at the thought of something so cool.

Which is why his smile crashed and burned as soon as Sanbica spoke.

"As I was saying, I can't see it right now," she bit her lip. "Sorry."

"What!? Why!?"

"How do you want me to see your Guardian Star in the middle of the day?" She poked him on the forehead, forcing him back into his chair. "There are no stars right now!"

"O-oh," he whispered, ashamed that he didn't think of that. "Well… are you gonna be here at night?"

"Yep, though only for today," she said. "I'm afraid I'll be heading for greener pastures tomorrow when I travel to Pastoria," she formed a sly smile and raised her eyebrows at him. "Get it? Greener pastures? Because… the marsh and all that."

She laughed really hard at her own joke, and Barry would've followed if he didn't find the woman so strange. He let out a couple polite chuckles and leaned back.

"Then… I'll see if I can come back after dinner, and I'll bring Niss!" he exclaimed excitedly. "I'm sure she'd love to know too."

"Bring as many people as you want, that means more money for me," she said. "However, if the stars don't wish for us to meet again today, know that I'll be setting up shop at the bonfire party that will take place in Pastoria a couple weeks from now. You know how teens love all this medium stuff."

 _A couple weeks from now?_  he thought to himself,  _That'll be right around my birthday…_

"You make it sound like you're gonna scam them," he laughed.

"Hey, I already told you that my abilities are one hundred percent legit." She raised a finger at him. "But we all gotta eat, kid, and I'm not gonna waste an opportunity to make money if it's right in front of me."

"I'll try to be here later," he smiled. "Ah... now I really gotta go though. I have to get back to the Gym."

She nodded solemnly, "Do what you must. And as a freebie and token of my appreciation, know that your unlucky number today is three nine seven, and your unlucky color is red."

He raised an eyebrow, "Aren't you… supposed to tell me my lucky number and color instead of unlucky?"

She shrugged, "It's better to know what to look out for. Now go, or you're gonna be late."

He gave her a polite nod and got up, taking the required money from his pocket and paying her for the strange fortune. He assured her he'd be back at night and waved as he walked away.

However he stopped a few feet from the table, brow furrowed, and turned around towards her again.

"By the way…" he asked, grabbing her attention. "Who is your Guardian Star?"

Sanbica seemed to be expecting that question, judging by the mysterious smile she showed him.

"Who else but the great Jirachi itself?" she exclaimed proudly. "Only those born under its bright light can possess these abilities, after all."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa was, as she so eloquently put it inside her head, freaking the ever-loving fuck out _,_ which didn't help with the ghost Pokemon's wishes of having a conversation with her.

"I thought having a more human appearance would make you more comfortable!" Hao yelled, a cartoonishly large sweat drop appearing at the side of his head.

Inyssa shook her head strongly, "How is that human? You look straight out of a bad RPG from twenty years ago! I…" She drove one hand through her hair, words failing her. "Hao, I appreciate it but like… this is really fucking weird. How are you even…?"

Hao sent a small jolt through Inyssa's wrist, making her squint. A devious smile could be seen on his face.

"You saw what I can do back in Eterna, didn't you?" his avatar shrugged, at about four frames per second. "Controlling a tridimensional model program and a voice modulator isn't a big deal."

 _I beg to differ_ , she wanted to say. If not for the painful shock he'd sent her way she would've thought she was dreaming.

"I just… this is…" she took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. "No offense Hao but… this is not how I imagined this was gonna play out at all."

His avatar smiled widely, showing his perfect white teeth. It kinda reminded her of Barry.

"Don't I look cute in this?" he said as he did a small twirl, grabbing onto the folds of his outfit. "Shame about my hair, though. I wanted more of a # f6865d kind of color but I had to settle for a # f84200 due to the app's limitations."

Inyssa had absolutely no idea what any of those garbled letters and numbers meant, and she made it clear by the complete and utter confusion reflected in her face. She felt like the cogs inside her brain had stopped.

"Oh, almost forgot," Hao stopped doing twirls and he set his blue eyes on her. "You said you'd do anything I wanted, right?"

She was caught off guard, but after a few seconds she gave him a slow, careful nod. Something about the way he talked… she knew his voice was completely electronic and didn't belong to him, but she could feel his intonation through it somehow.

"Yeah, I owe you that much."

"Awesome!" he clapped. "I didn't want to rush you, but I've been waiting for this for a while."

"Sorry for making you wait," she rubbed the back of her neck. "So, what do you want?"

The answer made itself wait, and Inyssa had to stop herself from complaining and tell him to just say it already. A knot started to form in her throat.

"What I want..." he looked at her, not smiling anymore, "is for you to break my Pokeball."

_Oh._

Inyssa wanted to take a step back, but feared she'd break into pieces as soon as she did so. A memory surfaced from the icy mist inside her mind.

She was suddenly fifteen again, wearing her old black and pink outfit. An open door stood between her and the look of regret and sadness in Sarah's eyes.

She'd brought with her the news that would change her life, tucked all neat and professionally under her arm. The news that would turn her mother bedridden for almost a year and land Inyssa in a hospital for weeks. Eyes dull and colorless, mind dazed by the myriad of pills given to her as punishment for what she'd tried to do. For trying to make the hurt stop, make the knowledge that she was fated to be abandoned by everyone disappear.

She'd lost more than just a sister that day. And faced with the realization that she might be about to lose Hao as well… even if she didn't know him that well, even if he was the member of her team she struggled to understand the most…

She felt wetness form in her eyes, and quickly covered them with her hands. Sloppy they were, all shaking and about as telltale as an open book.

_Get a fucking hold of yourself._

"If that's what you want…" she began to say, desperation clinging to her voice. "I'll do it, I'll break…"

"Jeez, what's gotten into you?" Hao interrupted her with a judging glance. "I'm only asking you to break it because I wanna live here from now on."

In any other situation, perhaps one where she wasn't on the verge of crying, Inyssa would've loved to see her own face as she heard him. She figured it might have been funny enough to make it all worth it.

"Wh-what?" she asked, whisper thin. "But I thought you…"

"What do I get from leaving you?" Hao shook his head slightly, one hand raised. "We're both after the same thing, and I can't survive out there."

She had to open her mouth a couple times before the words came out, "What do you… mean?"

"Stop saying  _What_!" He threw his hands down, eyebrows pinched together. "Seriously, it's like I'm talking to a kid. You're smart, aren't you? Stop bawling your eyes out and get a clue already!"

She threw one last sniff as she wiped her eyelids with her sleeve, "I wasn't bawling, shut up!"

Hao's avatar rolled his eyes and Inyssa had the urge to throw her Pokétch into the ground. What was he talking about anyway? Nothing indicated they had anything in common, much less…

She stopped, and realization came to her.

"Team Galactic," for the first time she uttered the name with more surprise than rage. "Back in Eterna! That old guy seemed to recognize you and…" She put a hand on her head, trying to remember through the haze of that day. "You were the one who made everything explode."

Hao looked at the side, biting his lip, "That wasn't my proudest moment. It wasn't long after you caught me so I was still pretty mad. I just wanted to bring down Charon, even if…" he gulped. "Well, you saw what happened. I do apologize for putting you in such danger."

Charon… she could swear she'd heard the name at some point in her life, but it just wasn't coming to her. Still, considering Hao's attitude towards him and the fact he'd been as heartless as to use a bunch of innocent young Pokemon to extract that energy…

She began to connect the dots inside her head, and really started wishing she was wrong about her assumptions.

"There was no information about you in the Pokédex. And the only one who saw you before me was my sister, so…" she gulped. "Are you… did Charon… create you?"

Silence swallowed the field around them for a few heartbeats, while Hao's eyes were glued to the lower part of the screen.

"That's one way you could put it," he said, all joy gone from his voice. "He's the one who turned me into… this."

"I've heard of artificial Pokemon like Porygon before, but… I never thought I'd see one," she whispered, beside herself. "Ah, sorry if that's insensitive"

"I don't care," he said, just a bit too fast for it to be true. "Not a huge fan of talking about it, and I don't remember many of the details myself. All I know is that I want to find Charon, and kill him."

The word made her recoil, even though she knew it shouldn't have. Of course he wanted the man dead, she chastised herself, so why did the idea turn sour inside her mind? If she were in front of Mars right now, would she…?

"Whenever I go against Team Galactic I'll make sure to find him for you," she said. "I owe you that much."

"And when will that be?"

She stood quiet for a few seconds.  _I haven't really thought of that._

"I need to train my team first," she declared. "At the very least get through most of the Gyms before I go looking for them. I'm not gonna endanger any of my friends again."

Hao didn't seem to be paying much attention as he floated on his back through the screen, hands behind his head, "How noble of you. Well, you better catch someone else then, because I'm not really made for fighting."

Inyssa raised an eyebrow, "Really? You seemed plenty strong against Fantina's Mismagius."

"I am strong, and I needed to gain your trust," he said, "but I was specifically not designed for battle. Charon made it so just being in the open makes the electric charge of my body dissipate, and when I actually attack… well, I imagine you don't know what a huge part of your being suddenly disappearing feels like."

Guilt crept up her spine. She'd been the one who asked him for help during the fight with Fantina, and thanks to that…

"Don't feel bad about it," he waved his hand, seemingly reading her thoughts. "It's definitely not as bad as when you found me. Back then I was so weak and desperate I was willing to kill you just to get inside your Pokétch and recharge."

She wasn't sure how comfortable she felt with the casual way he'd mentioned that, as if trying to bury them under a couple tons of rubble were the equivalent of playing a prank on them.

"Why did you stay in the Old Chateau for so long?" she asked. "If you need to recharge your body after some time…"

A powerful shiver traveled from her wrist to the rest of her body, the pale ghost of the shock she'd suffered earlier. She stopped talking as she saw the daunting expression in Hao's eyes.

"I was trapped there," he growled, eyes narrowed, "by that woman, the one with the faded eyes."

"Sh-Shadi?" she gulped. "That can't be, she said in her report that you disappeared from the house and she gave up!"

Hao let out a sound halfway between a laugh and a cough of irritation, "Well, whatever her intention was, she's the reason I was stuck there for two years. She put that… weird stone plate in one of the rooms, and it was like a magnet. I couldn't get out of the house no matter how hard I tried."

 _The Specter Plate_ , she thought as her eyes went wide. An image flashed in her mind, that of Barry standing in front of that strange statue in Eterna City while he read the inscriptions in both the plates he'd found. All the while his eyes had turned into that warm and powerful golden color.

She bit her thumb, her mind going as fast as it was capable of trying to connect the dots. It felt like she was trying to solve a puzzle while blinded and missing half the pieces.

Shadi… she had the missing pieces, that was for sure. Whatever had happened to her it had something to do with all the strange things she'd encountered in her travels. It was possible that she and her friends had gotten into a situation they shouldn't have, and the result…

"I… I'm sure Shadi didn't know how your body worked," she said. "She didn't mean to put you in that situation."

"Don't worry about it," Hao shrugged. "I'd say we're about even considering what happened."

She couldn't help but smile, "Yeah… I guess."

"And it's nice to finally get to talk to you," he smiled.

"Yeah! I've been meaning to get to know you better, even if I'm still super weirded out by all this."

He dismissed it with a wave of his hand, "You'll get used to it."

Another thing came to mind, and she let her shoulders drop.

"How do I tell Barry about it? He'll freak out even worse than me," she laughed.

A wicked grin formed on Hao's face, "Another thing you don't know how to get across to Barry? Careful, that pile's already big enough to almost collapse on itself."

Inyssa's frown almost managed to make Hao regret his words.

"You…" she gulped, cheeks turning red. "Don't tell me…you could hear stuff through your Pokeball?"

"Yep, see them too," he laughed. "Don't worry though, I tried my best to respect your privacy. As best as I could, anyway."

She recoiled, realization hitting her like a punch to the face. That night with Barry, right after she'd woken up from her fever…

"Oh god…" she whispered, eyes unfocused. "Okay, new order. You're not allowed to see or hear anything that's outside whenever it's clear I want some privacy, you freak!"

Hao's high pitched giggle made her want to punch the screen until it turned to shreds.

"Sure, no problem," he said through chuckles. "I can use that time to do other things, like take a look at all these files you have inside this thing, connected to the computer in your house."

"You… wouldn't," she growled, voice full of poison.

He put a hand over his mouth, through which could be seen the corners of his smile, "Oh my, is this a folder full of your fanfiction? How curious…"

"Don't you dare!" she tried to shut off the Pokétch but all the buttons were locked, "Hao, this is not funny!"

" _I could feel Yuri's warm breath slip through my fingers as I placed the piece of chocolate in front of her face_ ," he read aloud, making Inyssa flinch at the sound of every word. " _She locked eyes with me and gently parted her lips, a deep blush tinting her cheeks red. The book we'd been reading left our minds as we bared the weight of each other's gaze, our hearts pounding longingly..._ "

"I swear to god I will throw this thing into the fucking lake!" she threatened, pointing towards a small body of water in the horizon.

"Jeez, learn to take a joke!" Hao put both hands in front of him. "I'm not gonna look into these anymore, I just wanted to get a rise out of you! I promise I'll behave…"

 _Now that's a goddamned lie_ , she thought to herself as she read through his expression like an open book.

She let out a deep sigh, "Great, now I have another pain in the ass to take care of."

They both shared a short laugh as they contemplated their current situation. Inyssa was pretty sure if someone had told her that her terrifying ghost Pokemon was a merry prankster who'd end up living inside her Pokétch she would've looked at them and silently wonder what kind of drugs they were on.

Still, there was something that weighed on her even though there was a smile on her lips. Something round and metal, hanging from the side of her belt like a cold reminder.

_It's just like a band-aid, you gotta do it fast so it doesn't hurt._

Except that had always been a lie because ripping something off fast still fucking hurt.

She grabbed Hao's Pokeball and moved it between her hands, the previous levity turning sour in her mouth as she convinced herself to do what she needed to do. It was only a gesture, after all. It wasn't like Hao would actually leave her.

"You can take your time," he said through the device. There was no sign of sarcasm in his voice.

She nodded slowly and pressed the button on the middle of the Pokéball. It opened and showed her an empty inside, coated in black metal and something that looked like glass.

_Just get it over with already._

Her fingers closed around the outer edges so strongly they turned white, and with hands trembling she started to apply force. The hinges keeping both halves together started to bend and budge under her strength, and after only a couple of seconds she felt the snap of thin metal, accompanied by a crack that, to her, sounded like the sound of bones shattering.

The now useless pieces of metal fell to the ground, bouncing slightly against the wet grass. She stared at them for god knows how long, eyes lost someplace else.

 _Looks like I'm down to four members again_ , she thought to herself, forming a weak smile.

 

* * *

 

 

Barry paid almost no attention to his surroundings as he walked back to the Gym, hands on his pockets and deep in thought.

Both Maylene and Sanbica's words still buzzed around his mind like flies, and he had trouble not getting lost in them too much. He loathed riddles and things whose answer you couldn't just stumble into with goodwill and charm alone. And he'd gotten more than his fair share of them recently.

Holding himself back? Beware the shapeless vanguard? How was he even supposed to begin to understand what that meant?

"Guess I'll have to ask Niss for advice," he whispered to himself.

He was walking past a spacious park filled with a multitude of young people, and a few kids sprinkled here and there, when a voice reached him.

"E-excuse me!"

The voice was breathy and high pitched, and when he turned around he saw a girl about as tall as him, with short orange hair and a bunch of freckles covering her face. He was pretty sure he'd never seen her before.

"I'm sorry, but…" she spoke up, forming a nervous smile. "Are you… Barry? Barry Paladino?"

He narrowed his eyes, still a bit dazed from being brought back to reality so harshly. There was something about her, something about the way her words trailed off and the tone of her voice… he couldn't help but feel a strange shiver as he heard them.

"Uh… yeah," he cleared his throat, trying to smile. "Who are you?"

"I knew it!"

The girl clapped her hands together, and before Barry had time to react she threw herself at him, putting her left arm around his and grabbing him by the side. Barry was too startled to react.

"I saw your fight against Fantina!" she exclaimed, and something about the shine of her dark red eyes felt strange to him. "You were so cool! I never thought I'd meet a rising star like you here!"

Barry had absolutely no idea what to say or do as she hugged him like they were old friends. He stood frozen for a few seconds, stammering and trying to get the words out.

 _Why does weird stuff keep happening to me?_  he lamented.

"I… well… thanks?" he laughed awkwardly. "I just… you know…"

But the girl didn't wait for him to finish, and squeezing him tightly she spoke again.

"And where is your friend Niss?" she asked, a strange glow coming out of her eyes. "I've been looking for you both!

The word  _fangirl_  came to mind, and Barry didn't know exactly how to feel about it. On one hand it was flattering to see someone recognize him by his abilities as a Pokemon trainer, but he wasn't sure this was the type of recognition he wanted.

"She's… uh, training. I think," he gulped. "She should be back in the Pokemon Center in an hour or so, if you wanna talk to her too."

The girl pouted, "Can't you tell me where she is now? Pretty please?"

Barry considered it for a moment, and realized that Niss would never forgive him if he sent the strange girl towards her while she had no opportunity to hide from her.

"S-sorry," he scratched the back of his head. "Like I said, you can meet us in the Pokemon Center before dinner if you want. Also I kinda need to be in the Gym so if you don't mind…"

He tried to free himself, and that's when it hit him. Cold, painful and enveloping his entire body, coming from the girl holding him. She didn't let go, fingers grabbing him with enough strength to make him hurt.

"That won't do, I'm afraid," she spoke, her voice suddenly dropping. "I need to know where she is. Now."

He instinctively recoiled, putting a hand on the girl's left arm. That's when he felt something sharp against the lower part of his chest. The back of his neck tingling, he looked down to see her other hand holding a small knife to him.

"Wh-"

"Act natural," she growled, all signs of her previous excitement gone from her voice. "If you try to move or scream, I'll pierce your liver."

Panic filled his mind. The dark red of her eyes were set on his, and he could physically feel the weight of her words hitting him like a blizzard, rendering him unable to move. She was not joking.

"Wh-who are you?" he whispered, voice breaking.

Her lips became thin and formed something akin to a smile, but somewhat off.

"How rude, I haven't introduced myself," she giggled, pressing the knife even harder to his chest. "Still, it makes me a little sad that you don't recognize me, Barry."

He was about to ask what she meant when it happened. With unbridled horror he saw as the girl's skin and clothes melted into a pink, bubbling mass. The shapeless blob contracted back into her shoulder, revealing her true appearance.

Her hair was now short and red, spiked upwards in a crescent shape. She had olive skin and her face was sharp and angular like a hawk. The only thing that hadn't changed were her piercing, cold eyes, still set on him.

"I have a lot of names," she whispered into his ear. "But you can call me Mars."


	29. Just Under The Skin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween everyone!! This chapter isn't as intentionally creepy as House of Ashes was, but I hope you'll enjoy it nonetheless.

The knife felt cold against his chest, though not as much as the pair of eyes set on him.

Mars' lips drew close to his ear as she whispered, "Now, be a good boy and tell me where your friend is."

Her voice was no less sharp than the weapon. Mars must've expected him to be frozen by it, unable to refuse her demands. But something about her smile and fake-sweet intonation…

His nose flared up in anger. He slowly turned his head and looked directly at her.

"You're… the one that killed Niss' Pokemon," he felt his growling voice rumbling from his stomach towards his throat, "you're the one that beat her up! Like hell I'm gonna tell you anything you wit–!"

Mars' left hand clasped at his wrist and twisted the arm behind his back. A jolt of pain exploded in his shoulder, cutting his breath short.

Her lips formed the hook of a cruel smile, "Come now, that was just a misunderstanding. Her Pokemon killed itself fighting mine, and I only attacked her in self defense."

"Don't give me that crap!" he yelled through the pain, eyes squinted. "It's all your fault! You kidnapped a little girl and her father!"

Mars let out a deep, exaggerated sigh, "It doesn't look like I'll be able to change your mind. Luckily, your assessment of me isn't a factor. All I need is for you to tell me where Inyssa is."

"I'd never do that!"

He wiggled his trapped arm, and felt a sudden pressure in his ribcage. The tip of the knife penetrated his clothes and ever so slightly dug into skin, making him yelp involuntarily.

"You don't seem to understand the position you're in, Barry."

Barry let out a pained laugh, "We're in the middle of a park full of people. What are you gonna do, stab me?"

"You know, if I were to actually stab you that would be a hilarious choice of last words," she said. "But no, I won't do that. You look like the kind of person who doesn't care about getting hurt, as long as his friends don't have to suffer. I can see it in your eyes."

Her reasoning was somewhat bizarre, though he didn't have much time to focus on that. The pressure of the knife disappeared as she lowered it to her hip and smiled. An actual smile, devoid of the cruelty it'd displayed just a minute before.

"Fortunately, I have another way to convince you."

Before he could ask what she meant, the sound reached him. Muffled screams, followed by the low rumbling of a nearby explosion. Through the edge of his sight he noticed a puff of flame expand from between two buildings.

The park turned into chaos as everyone scattered in different directions, only a couple of them running directly to the source of the commotion with Pokeballs in hand.

"What is that?" he looked at Mars, tone furious. "What are you doing!?"

"This is my incentive," she replied as they were left alone. "I knew I'd need a distraction, so I brought a few friends with me.."

He heard something collapse a few blocks from where they were. Thick clouds of smoke rose in the horizon, painting the sky as grey as the houses. .

"I ordered my grunts to cause as much chaos as possible," she explained. "That way I can carry out my mission while the cops and Gym leader are busy stopping them."

Barry's fingernails dug into his palms as he spoke, "You're not gonna get away with…!"

Another painful tug and the flare on his shoulder came back, "Now, this is the last time I'll repeat myself. Tell me where Inyssa is and I'll call off my troops. You don't wish to see innocent people hurt, do you?"

Mars waited for his answer, a satisfied look on her face. More than ten seconds passed in relative silence, while Barry listened to the chaos around him.

That's when he started laughing. It caught Mars off guard, and the confidence she'd displayed wavered as she narrowed her eyes in confusion. Barry kept laughing for a few heartbeats before finally speaking.

"Is that it?" he whispered, the edges of his lips forming a smile. "That's your big incentive? You really think I'm scared of a bunch of your useless grunts?"

Mars opened her mouth slightly, not able to hide the surprise caused by his statement.

"Are you going to sacrifice the citizens of Veilstone to save your friend?"

He shook his head, "Didn't you just hear me? I'm not gonna sacrifice anything because I know that your grunts aren't dangerous." His eyes, now a shining gold, met with hers and for the first time Mars felt the need to take a step back. "The people of Veilstone… the Gym leader… and Niss, I trust them. I know none of them would have a problem dealing with your friends. You're not gonna convince me with something as stupid as that."

Mars didn't know how to respond, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't enjoy the face she made. While she struggled to find her words he tried as subtly as possible to move his free left hand without alerting her, lowering it ever so slightly towards his belt.

"I see…" Mars' shoulders dropped, and she almost sounded sad. "You're not like most people I've met, Barry. I admit I was looking forward to seeing what kind of person you were when your life was on the line, but this is…" she closed her eyes and sighed, "sorely disappointing."

His fingers reached the metal of one of his Pokeballs, and he had to contain a smile. The golden hue of his eyes hadn't vanished yet, and it filled his chest with a strange warmth.

"I hope you're getting used to that feeling."

His thumb pressed the button, and light exploded between them. The form which materialized out of it pushed their bodies in opposite directions, throwing them to the grass. Barry rolled once and jumped backwards, landing on one knee. Mars let out a gasp of pain as red coated her uniform, just below her right shoulder.

She opened her eyes to see a metal fin pointed towards her, stained with some of her blood. Pedri stood between the two of them, eyes dark and anger forming a terrible mask over his face.

Three other bursts of light followed, and when Mars' eyes could adjust she saw a Floatzel, Staravia and Kadabra staring daggers at her.

She raised an eyebrow, "Nice one. That's the second time one of you kids tricks me like that."

Barry didn't say a word as he approached, his gaze reflecting what he felt as clear as day. It was stronger too, ever since his eyes had changed color. It almost hurt now, clawing at the inside of his veins like a hurricane. He was having trouble concentrating on the world around him.

"That's some nasty fury behind your eyes," she said, as if she could feel it too. "Are you ready to kill, Barry? Because it certainly feels like you are."

The boy shook his head slightly and tried to regain his composure. When he spoke he could almost feel the wind roaring in his ears.

"N-no…" his voice was rough and wavy. "I'm… gonna beat you up and give you Niss so she can punch you in the face. Then I'm gonna take you to the police so they can lock you up."

Mars effortlessly got to her feet and cleaned the dust off her outfit, as if she'd simply tripped. She didn't even seem to notice the wound on her arm.

"That's very brave, but I assure you that it won't end good for you or your Pokemon," she stated matter of factly. "This is your last warning. Tell me where Inyssa is and I'll call off this mobilization. Tell your Pokemon to attack me and I will not hold back."

A cocky smile formed on his lips, "You really think I'm that dumb? It's five against one."

"Numbers mean very little in the face of overwhelming power," she said. "But… as you wish. I hope the consequences of this decision will teach you a lesson."

Barry doubted slightly, though he reassured himself by realizing she didn't have any Pokeballs visible.

He nodded to himself, and pointed at Mars, "Get her!"

All four of his Pokemon leapt forward, somewhat fueled by Barry's wave of emotion. Paulette was the fastest one, and she reached Mars before her companions could. Her wings glowed with energy as she prepared to attack.

Mars smiled then, and time seemed to stop.

The next thing Barry saw was a spray of blood, followed by a ghastly shriek.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa ran back to town as quickly as possible, wind roaring in her ears. This time she wouldn't let them get away, she assured herself. She would do everything in her power to make sure those Galactic bastards got what they deserved.

She found the first two a couple blocks after she entered town. Through the edge of her vision she noticed the white and grey of their uniforms, and almost sent herself flying forward with how sharply she stopped her running.

A man and a woman, she figured. They were slowly approaching three children who hopelessly tried to defend themselves with a Bidoof and a Chatot, who looked on the brink of defeat. The image of the first Pokemon made her blood boil, and with almost enough force to crush it she grabbed one of her Pokeballs and threw it forward.

"Bret, Razor Leaf!"

The Roselia was momentarily surprised and somewhat angry that he'd been called to action after such grueling training. But as he saw the situation in front of him his expression turned into a dark grimace and he punched the air with both hands, sending a torrent of petals towards them. The attack caught the grunt's Glameow off guard, and they could barely react as they were pelted against one of the nearby walls, collapsing immediately.

Inyssa allowed herself a satisfied smile. Even when exhausted Bret's attacks had grown so much stronger.

"Who is that!?" the woman yelled as she elbowed her partner. "Quick, take out your…!"

"Grass Knot!"

The fury of her scream washed over them before the attack did. Bret put both petal covered hands against the ground and mere seconds after the cement broke under their feet. Thick vines climbed up their bodies, slithering until they were completely restrained and unable to even speak.

They fell to the ground with a weak  _thump_ , and desperately struggled and growled through the vines as they tried to free themselves.

_No chance, assholes._

She ran to the three boys, and almost too late she realized she hadn't wiped the anger off her face, which explained the looks of terror they gave her.

"It's okay now," she assured them, trying to smile. They couldn't be much older than ten. "Did they hurt any of you?"

The one in the left shook his head, tears starting to run down his cheeks. The other two tried hard to play it cool but she could see they were just as terrified.

She stood up straight and put both hands on her hips, "There's no reason to fear, I already took care of them!" she exclaimed proudly, imitating Barry's booming voice. "But there might be more around. You need to get to the Pokemon Center and tell the nurse what's happening. You'll be safe there."

She didn't know how effective her approach would be, especially since she was horrid at trying to make others feel better or just talking to kids in general. However they all nodded as they looked around. Two of them started running immediately, but the one previously crying turned to her and smiled.

"T-thanks, miss!" he gulped before following his friends.

She had no idea why, but she winked at him and made finger guns.

_Oh my god what's wrong with me?_

Shaking the thought off she returned Bret to his Pokeball and looked down at the two people still trying to free themselves from their binds. The strength of the vines told her they would be like that until someone found them, which was good enough. She didn't have time to personally bring each one of them to the police.

Without thinking it over she kicked the man in the leg and turned around to run towards the Gym. Chances were Barry would be there with Maylene, and she wanted to make sure he was fine before allowing herself the pleasure to beat up as many Galactic grunts as possible.

 

* * *

 

 

She saw him barely two minutes later, walking along the pavement road leading away from the Gym. He was scowling at something.

"Barry!"

Her scream had more than its fair share of desperation mixed in. The boy turned towards her with eyes widened, and she put a hand on his shoulders as soon as she reached him. His left arm was stained in a little bit of blood.

"Are you okay?" she didn't gave him time to respond. "What happened!?"

He took a step back and gulped, heavy shadows under his eyes, "Nissa! It's… it's nothing, I just ran into a couple of them."

She narrowed her eyes, a strange feeling creeping through her spine.

"We'll make them pay for that," she assured him. "Where's the Gym leader?"

He turned around and pointed south with his left hand, "Mary's fighting in front of the Gym and told me to come look for you. She wants us to go back to the Pokemon Center."

She stared at him from head to toe for a few heartbeats, and slowly nodded.

"Come on, we need to hurry!"

She followed as he walked down street towards the edge of town, close to one of the tips of the forest.

"I'm glad Mary's taking care of the situation," she spoke, eyes fixated on Barry. "She'll clean the floor with those idiots in no time."

He let out a small laugh, "Yeah… we'd probably be a nuisance if we tried to help."

She nodded slowly. "By the way, I have some gauss in my backpack. I could cover that wound you have on your arm."

As subtly as possible she grabbed it by its thin strap and put a hand inside, closing her fingers around a small, metallic handle.

"You're so nice, Nissa," Barry whispered, eyeing the forest at their left.

Inyssa bit her lip and swallowed her emotions down. A deep, deliberate breath, and she let the backpack fall to the ground.

Barry had no time to react. She lunged towards him as fast as her legs allowed and punched the air forward with the switchblade. The feeling and sound of sharp metal against flesh sent a shiver through her spine and the base of her clenched teeth.

A forceful gasp of air was heard in front of her, and wasting no time she took a step back and raised her leg, kicking just below the knee. He tried to regain his balance by landing on the other foot, but with the confusion and pain he wasn't fast enough and collapsed onto the ground face first.

Inyssa jumped backwards, hands trembling and chest rising up and down. A long lock of hair covered one of her eyes. With the remaining one she saw the knife sticking out of Barry's previous wound. He didn't scream. Didn't curse either or turned around to ask what the hell did she think she was doing. He simply raised himself to his knees and grabbed the handle of the knife with his right hand.

He pulled it out effortlessly, shadows covering his eyes.

"How did you know?"

Mars' voice hit her with enough force to steal her breath. Pure, cold malice washed over her, making every inch of her skin shiver.

But the voice did something else. It brought back a fresh, painful memory and lit up her insides only a moment after, dispelling the cold with ease. Inyssa took a decisive step forward, grabbing two Pokeballs with each hand.

"Your imitation was downright terrible," she declared, looking down at her. "Barry never calls me Nissa, and he wouldn't suggest that we go hide while the city's being attacked. You also don't seem to know that Maylene is the new Gym Leader of this town." A defiant smile stretched across her face. "Besides, you fucked up your transformation. Your right hand's a lot paler than your left one."

Mars' eyes went wide for a moment, as if that last tidbit had surprised even her. Letting out a sigh, she let her disguise dissolve into that gum-like pink paste as it contracted into her own body. She lazily turned around to look at Inyssa, caring none for the blood rushing down her arm.

"You're wrong about that last thing, though I doubt you'd understand even if I explained it. Still, how embarassing," she tittered. "Outsmarted by kids twice in the same day. I must be losing my touch."

It really was her. The realization was almost too heavy, too upsetting. There was so much Inyssa wanted to tell Mars, so much she wanted to do to her. But before she could get to any of that…

"Where's Barry?"

Mars arched up an eyebrow at her question. Curiously, like a Purrloin.

"That's the first thing you ask, huh? Such a good, faithful friend. Tell me, just how close were you to him?"

Prickles of anger grew from under her skin, and all attempts at being calm were thrown out the window as she opened her mouth.

"Shut up!" she growled. "I asked you a question, now answer it before I do something worse than stab you."

"You should learn to bluff better," Mars said nonchalantly. "You don't have the guts to kill me, as evidenced by your choice of where to stab me."

"Stop talking! I'm sick of hearing you, just tell me where Barry is!"

Mars laughed at her. A short, casual laugh which did little to ease the knot that had formed in her stomach. Why wasn't she telling her? She couldn't have…

 _Stop thinking that_ , she told herself,  _Stop fucking thinking that._

The woman scratched her cheek with the hand of her wounded arm, expression devoid of any pain or worry. She looked like someone in the middle of a peaceful evening stroll, and Inyssa hated it more than anything.

Mars savored the silence for a few more seconds before answering.

"I really liked that kid. It's such a shame…" she raised her gaze, and the cold of her eyes met with the burning green of Inyssa's. "I hope you can find solace in the fact that he fought so, so bravely."

Something cracked inside her, evidenced by the burning pain she felt as she tried to breathe. Her ribcage felt made of broken glass.

Her hands moved unconsciously. Four lights exploded in front of her, materializing into her trusted partners. The voice which came out of her mouth didn't sound like hers.

"Kill her! KILL HER!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, face contorted by rage. "LEAVE NOTHING LEFT!"

Only Kuro and Shadi obeyed, the first due to his questionable moral code and the second thanks to her undying loyalty to her trainer. Bret and Steven watched in horror as their companions jumped forward without hesitation, fangs and scythes brimming with energy.

In the daze of her burning fury Inyssa barely saw what happened. All she heard was the sound of something sharp cutting the air, followed by Shadi's body flying backwards, cushioned only by the scarf around her neck. An arc of blood followed her trajectory, falling on top of her as she laid on the ground. Kuro barely managed to get out of the way of the slash.

"SHADI!"

Desperation clung to her voice as she ran forward without even looking at Mars. Throwing herself to the floor she landed on her knees in front of Shadi. She held her in her trembling hands and turned her torso towards her, trying to get a better look at the wound. The cut was long and wide, though it didn't seem as deep as she expected.

Shadi was still conscious, and with clear effort tried to free herself from her trainer's hands, something Inyssa refused by pulling her even closer. Hot, sudden tears began running down her face as she gasped in fear.

"How…"

She raised her sight towards Mars, and the shock stole her breath. She had to be dreaming, the logical part of her mind assured her. It was the only explanation for what she was seeing.

Where her right arm was previously located now was a long, white scythe with a green back border which extended to her elbow. She recognized it immediately even though it wasn't attached to the Pokemon it belonged to; a Scyther's arm.

"Wh-wha…" she whispered in disbelief. "That's… that's not…"

Mars winced while she moved the scythe around, as if she were getting used to it. She didn't pay any mind to Inyssa until she finished the examination of her new limb.

"I would've thought a kid like you would know how to take a joke," she turned to her, smiling. "Don't worry, I didn't kill your friend. I just roughed him up a little to get him out of the way."

A strange mix of happiness and bewilderment flooded her as she failed to react to her words, eyes still as wide as plates. She couldn't… she couldn't be lying again, could she? She needed to believe that Barry was still alive. He had to be.

"I adored your reaction, though," she added. "You caught me off guard, which is why I had to use this."

She raised her Scyther arm casually, showing it to her, "You like it? I've been working on this transformation for a few weeks now, trying to polish all the details to perfection."

Inyssa was barely listening, eyes fixated on Shadi's wound. All heat had evaporated from her body, leaving her a cold, confused husk. She heard the rest of her Pokemon slowly approaching, eyeing her carefully as if she were a fragile thing about to break. They surrounded her, shielding her from Mars.

She then noticed that the wound on her arm had completely disappeared, and that was the most painful blow of all.

"It doesn't make sense…" she whispered, almost low enough for Mars not to hear her. "That's not… how it works. How did you…"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but Ditto won't let me die even if I wanted to," she shrugged, almost stabbing herself with the tip of her scythe. "You can thank Charon for that, though I doubt you'll ever get the chance to."

She had absolutely no idea what Mars was talking about, and didn't really care either way. Her hands were trembling so strongly she had trouble holding onto Shadi, and her eyes lacked all the fire they'd displayed only a few minutes before.

The sound of footsteps reached her, followed by the combined growl of Steven, Bret and Kuro warning Mars to take a step back. She did not.

"So? What now"

She weakly raised her head, "W-what?"

"Are you going to attack me with the rest of your Pokemon?" She pointed to her partners with the scythe, looking bored. "I'm sure you could eventually restrain me, but how many of them do you think I'd be able to kill by then?"

Inyssa didn't reply, mostly because she knew the truth. Not only was Shadi severely wounded but the rest of her partners were still exhausted by their previous training. And if Mars could turn her limbs into those of any Pokemon…

"You seem very attached to that Kricketune, too. It would be a shame if something were to happen to her."

She tried to contain a sob. It didn't matter how much she wanted to beat Mars, it didn't matter how strong her hate burnt. She wouldn't put any more of her friends in danger, even if…

"I'm sorry…" she raised her head and smiled. "I hope you won't hate me for this."

When realization hit her partners, it was too late. All four of them tried to get out of the way but were caught by the red beam of their respective Pokeballs, disappearing into light and returning to them.

She could see Hao's face in the device on her wrist, eyebrows knit together. She read his expression perfectly, and knew he would be willing to help even if it could severely hurt him. She shook her head lightly.

"That was a smarter decision than I expected from you," Mars smiled as she effortlessly turned her arm to normal. "Now, I'm gonna need you to follow me. All right?"

She felt herself lighter and faded as she got to her feet, eyes fixated on the ground and strands of hair covering most of her face. With weak fingers she detached the strap of her belt and let it fall gently to the ground, next to her white backpack.

"Don't do anything to my Pokemon," she ordered, voice whisper thin. "And call off your grunts. Don't hurt anyone else."

 _What the hell are you doing!?_  the gnawing voice inside her mind screamed in frustration,  _You can't just give up like that! Fight her!_

 _Just shut up already_ , she replied.

Mars nodded, "Very well, I'll do that as soon as we're out of the city. Now get in front of me and start walking. Hands behind your head."

Inyssa fulminated her with her gaze as she walked forward just like she'd been told, disgust growing in the pit of her stomach. The forest lay in front of them, looking a lot darker than she remembered it.

An idea crossed her mind. Just because she had no choice but to comply it didn't mean she couldn't try to find another way out.

"I get it," she spoke through the soreness of her throat. "You don't want me to send a distress signal with my Pokétch."

Mars raised an eyebrow, "My, what a smart kid you are."

Inyssa really hoped Hao would pick up on her suggestion, as daft as she'd learned the ghost to be. She started to get nervous after a few seconds of nothing happening, but then a jolt of electricity hit her wrist and she smiled. If she could just hold on for a few minutes…

The path they followed took them deep into the forest, and Inyssa discovered just how hard it was to keep her balance and not trip over roots or rocks while having her arms raised behind her head. Mars followed from behind, her footsteps almost estinto. She was unexpectedly quiet.

They arrived at a small clearance, not too unlike the one she'd lost Enma in that night. Thick shadows fell over them, with only the rare ray of light filtering through the leaves above. Rushing water could be heard from afar.

She instinctively recoiled when Mars walked past her, though the woman paid no mind to her. The thought of turning around and making a run for it crossed her mind, but that was quickly placated by the fresh memory of that grim looking scythe.

"You can come out now," Mars spoke to the forest, hands on her hips.

Two figures appeared from behind the trees, and Inyssa wondered how she hadn't noticed them before. One of them was tall and lanky with an angular face, and the other one was short and chubby, with a black patch covering his left eye. His skin was a lot paler than last time, though the wrath in his expression hadn't changed.

Mars turned her head towards her, "You remember my associates, yes?"

She shifted in place, her mind going through every possible escape option she could think of. She needed to make time, needed them to talk for as long as possible.

"Yeah, maybe," she shrugged. "They look familiar."

She expected Dione to yell at her, but all she got for her answer was a cold grimace as the man turned his hands into fists.

Janus took a step forward, avoiding looking at Inyssa, "Commander, should I notify the remaining squadrons to fall back? I have our escape route ready."

His voice was brittle and low, leagues different from what she remembered from their first encounter. Back then the man had been so cartoonishly smug and dramatic she had a hard time hating him. She almost felt bad for whatever had happened to change that. Almost.

"Yes, tell them to retreat," Mars nodded. "However, we're not escaping just yet."

Dione spoke for the first time, "But, Commander, our orders were to capture the objective and bring her back for… processing," he looked at Inyssa as he said the last word, and she didn't like one bit the tone he used.

"As soon as we enter the base they will take her away from us, and I'm not finished with her just yet."

Inyssa did her best not to falter under the gleam of her eyes. A gust of wind hit her in the back, carrying something more than cold with it.

"Do you know why our boss wants you?"

The question caught her off guard, though she wouldn't have replied even if she knew. She wouldn't give her the satisfaction.

"From what I've been told, you have something that belongs to us." She leaned in and out on the ball of her feet, looking bored. "One of Charon's experiments. I believe its name is Rotom."

A painful spasm shook her hand and Inyssa had to stop herself from gasping. Luckily, Mars didn't seem to notice it.

"The boss also said you've been interfering with our plans too much, so by processing you we could eliminate two problems at once," she continued to prance around Inyssa. "But... there's something there that doesn't make sense, and I was hoping you could shed some light on it."

Judging by the way Janus and Dione knit their eyebrows together she figured they didn't know what Mars was talking about either.

"You see, when someone becomes a hassle, we tend to get rid of them…" She laned forward, almost whispering in her ear. "Processing someone is a complicated and risky procedure, so why would the boss resort to that? Why not simply order us to retrieve Rotom and kill you? The idea that he could feel anything even remotely close to mercy is laughable, so then… why?"

She turned around and addressed her two underlings, "Well, how about you two? Any ideas?"

Janus' voice shook as he spoke, "I… no offense, Commander, but is that really important? We have to follow the boss' orders no matter what, right?"

Mars raised her left hand and showed him what appeared to be a peace sign, raising two fingers.

"You're wrong about two things," she declared jovially. "First, you don't work for the boss, I do. You work for me, which means you must follow my orders no matter what. And second, only a mindless slave would do what they're told without first thinking about it. Are you a slave, Janus?"

"I…" he stared incredulously at her, guilt clear on his face. "I… don't know."

"How about you, Dione?"

The unwavering fury in his eye didn't falter as he replied, "I don't care what I am, as long as I can see that brat get what she deserves."

Inyssa stared him down without blinking, heat growing from the pit of her stomach.

"Still sore about last time?" she asked, forming a lopsided smile. "Maybe if you hadn't been such an incompetent trainer this wouldn't have happened to you. By the way, how's that better judgment thanks to losing your eye working out for you?"

Dione's nose flared up, and without hesitation he took something out of the holster on his hip and pointed it at her. She recognized the barrel of a gun, and her smile died.

_Ah, shit._

Janus hurriedly ran towards his partner with a look of urgency.

"Dione, wait!" he put a hand over his friend's shoulder. "Our orders! Saturn said…!

"He said bring her back alive!" he roared, hands trembling over the gun. "A bullet in the foot won't kill her, would it?" He looked directly at her, a devious smile forming on his lips, "Well? How about you apologize for what you just said?"

To say she was quaking in her boots would've been putting it lightly, and yet at no point did she show that outwardly. She opened her mouth and did her best to infuse as much confidence into her voice as possible.

"You chose to be part of Team Galactic," she declared. "I have no sympathy for you. You got what you deserved."

His left eye spasmed as his finger hovered over the trigger. Shaking, uncertain. Janus stared at him intently, and something like regret could be seen shadowing their expressions.

After what felt like a lifetime he lowered the gun, hesitantly.

"You'll get your punishment soon enough," he said, shoulders dropping. He looked defeated.

Janus let out a sigh of relief, and Inyssa felt tempted to do the same. The sound of hands clasping together startled all of them as they turned to look at Mars.

"Alright!" she yelled, smiling. "And now that we resolved that, how about we get back to our previous discussion? Anyone have a complaint?"

No one said anything, as she'd probably expected.

"Wonderful. Now, Inyssa…" she faced her, raising her chin up slightly. "Care to hear my theory about why the boss wanted us to capture you?"

Her voice came out rough and bitter, "I don't care."

"Oh, I'm sure that will change very soon," she assured. "You see, I believe the boss needs you alive, and there are only two explanations for that. First!" she raised a finger towards the sky. "He could be interested in your potential as a trainer. I'd be compelled to believe that were it not because our plans are close to completion, and there is no way you could improve so much in that short a time."

She almost felt offended by her comment, until she realized that was probably the least horrible thing she'd said or done that day.

"I'm more inclined towards my second theory." She raised a second finger, and smiled deviously. "The boss needs you alive because someone else wants you alive. Someone he doesn't want to trifle with, and someone who's interested about your wellbeing." Her lips stretched so thin they became a line on her face. "Any idea who that might be?"

She frowned, not sure what Mars was getting at. How the hell would she know that? She didn't know anyone who was working with Team Galactic, not even tangentially.

An uncomfortable shiver ran up her spine. An idea came to her, and a face appeared in her mind. No, that was ridiculous. There was absolutely no way…

"You know, I didn't recognize you the last time we met," Mars' voice showed the slightest hint of anger, which startled Inyssa. "What with how dark it was and all. Your eyes did remind me of someone, but… I just figured it was a coincidence."

Her eyes widened as realization hit her. Her legs lost strength and felt like they turned to jelly.

_No…_

"And then I saw your fight against Fantina. After your miraculous victory you pointed at the camera and declared your name, for the entire world to hear," Mars said wistfully. "Inyssa Dawn. I felt like such an idiot for not realizing it sooner."

Cold emerged from behind the trees surrounding them, covering the entire clearance they were in. Slowly she looked up at Mars, and their eyes met.

She barely restrained herself from gasping in terror. Her face was plain and emotionless, but the sheer anger and hate her eyes exuded could be felt by everyone around her. It was leagues above anything she'd ever felt before, making her previous outbursts look like the tantrum of a child. It was bottomless, as wide as cold as winter itself.

She had no idea how she'd even consider trying to fight her before. All she wanted to do now was run away until she was as far away as possible. Mars opened her mouth to speak, and Inyssa sincerely feared her words might kill her.

"You're the spitting image of your sister, you know."

The utmost disgust could be felt behind her words. She'd never seen the woman show anything even close to anger before, and such a change almost left her unable to speak back.

"H-how… how do you…" her own words seemed scared to come out, "how do you know Shadi?"

Before she could reply Janus took a tentative step forward, barely able to look at his boss.

"C-commander, if I may. Shouldn't we… start our escap-"

"Janus, if you interrupt me again I will kill you."

Her voice was like knives, and what scared them the most was just how nonchalantly she'd said that. Like she was telling someone their shirt was white or the sky was blue. None of them had any doubts about the veracity of her threat; she was completely serious.

"Now, for your question," she addressed Inyssa again, and the girl froze. "It makes me a little sad that after all this you still don't remember me. All I can say is that I still feel the sting of the knife your sister drove into my back."

Mars took a step towards her, and she took a step back accordingly. The entirety of her willpower fought against the waves of fear washing over her.

"I… I have no idea who you are," she said, raising her chin. "B-but, whatever Shadi did to you, I'm sure you deserved it."

It happened in a blink. Mars lunged forward with speed which turned her into a blur, and before Inyssa could do anything the woman was on top of her. She barely caught the glimpse of her left arm making an arc towards her, and the impact against her cheek stole the air from her lungs.

It felt like she'd been hit in the face with a hammer. Before she knew it she was on the ground, eyes barely focused on the leaves above. The pain flared a couple seconds later, and its intensity made her eyes water.

"A-agh!" she took a hand to her cheek, body shaking. Her vision was blurry. "Aah…"

"My god that felt good," Mars chuckled above. "You do look like her, after all."

Still dazed she rolled to the side and tried to lift herself with her hands, but fell again as a wave of dizziness washed over her. The ground under her face felt cold.

"I hit you hard enough to throw your balance off, so I recommend you stay down for a while. I'd also recommend not arriving to conclusions when you have no idea what happened," the woman mentioned casually. "I'm not skilled enough to control my strength when I'm angry."

Her fingers dug deep into the soft earth. She felt the dull ember of rage under the daze that covered her entire body.

"Shut up…" she whispered, trying to drag herself up. "You know nothing… about her."

Mars broke into laughter, sudden and high pitched. She held her face in her left palm and shook her head.

"Oh, you poor thing" she chuckled. "You have so much faith in her, even though she abandoned you. Do you really think she died that day? As hard as I tried, I couldn't quite finish the job, I'm afraid."

"W-what!?" Desperation alone made Inyssa finally get on her knees, one hand still holding onto the ground. "What happened!? Did… did Team Galactic…?"

The faint sound of cicadas accompanied Mars' laugh, turning the sound unbearable.

"You're still in denial?" she shook her head. "I just told you my theory, didn't I? Shadi wasn't attacked by us. She and the boss have the same enemy after all, and I'm sure she's the reason we weren't ordered to kill you."

"That's not true," the words came out before she could stop them.

"Trust me, I'm just as unhappy with the idea as you are," Mars continued. "After all, the boss promised he would help me find her. It looks like we've both been lied to."

With effort she put one foot on the ground, supporting her weight on her knee, "You're… crazy. Shadi would never work for Team Galactic."

"Shadi would make a pact with the devil if it helped further her own goals," Mars replied, tone full of poison. "Do you want to know what happened that day, Inyssa? The reason she can't show her face anymore? The reason she betrayed those closest to her?"

"Go fuck yourself," she finally pushed herself to her feet, and the entire world seemed to blur around her. "I… don't care about your lies. My sister is a good person, and nothing you say will change that." For a moment her legs faltered, and she had to put a hand against a nearby tree not to fall. "You're just a selfish bastard who wants revenge for something you had coming to y–"

Mars moved faster than her dazed eyes could follow. Her foot buried in Inyssa's stomach, and as she flied backwards she felt as if a cannonball had just hit her.

She landed on her knees first, and soon after her forehead bounced on the cold dirt beneath her. Shapeless lights of brown and green danced in front of her eyes. She opened her mouth to breathe and the pain turned unbearable, as if she had a stake through her gut. She tried to contain the first heave, but by the second she couldn't hold it in and threw up with a ghastly sound, her entire body shaking.

She heard Mars' voice through the haze, and the sheer fury behind it made her shiver.

"Don't you dare say I'm doing this for myself!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, all semblance of her previous calm demeanor gone from her voice. "He's the one she has to pay for! He's the one she killed!"

Her words didn't make any sense to Inyssa, not that she'd be able to express that with the state she was in. The horrible taste of blood and vomit stuck to her gums and teeth, and only with herculean effort she willed herself to move away from the small puddle under her.

She knew she couldn't even stand, and her thoughts were more scattered than ever, what with the nausea and the excruciating pain in her stomach. Through her half closed eyes she saw what she thought was Mars pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Didn't I tell you not to make me angry? Then again I know you're not one to listen to people." A small opening appeared between two of her fingers, showing one of her eyes. "That really was rude of me. It's not your fault you believe so strongly in Shadi; after all she's always been good at manipulating people."

Barely registering her words, Inyssa made a sound halfway between a growl and a hiss. Dark appeared at the edges of her vision every time the pain flared up, which it did almost at the rhythm of a heartbeat.

Mars kneeled in front of her and smiled, "I wanted to meet you, Inyssa. I had to make sure that you really were her little sister and…" she shook her head and laughed. "I guess I had the vain hope that you wouldn't be as stupid as I was at your age. Fat change, right?"

A familiar sound reached her, that of flesh and mass twisting itself and changing into something new. She'd never paid attention to the sound of Mars' transformation before, but now that she concentrated on it she realized just how gut wrenching and disgusting it was.

Her eyes barely registered her new arm, which was a familiar green and silver in the shape of a scythe. Mars lowered the blade until it was next to Inyssa's cheek.

"It's funny… even though this played out just like I expected, I still find it sad," the woman said, shoulders dropped. "It's not like I care about falling as low as she did, I have no pride left to lose. This is the part where I was planning to kill you, after all."

The cold, plain of her statement turned her veins to ice. Fear crept up from her heart outwards, turning her into a shaking mess.

Janus' voice startled her.

"Commander!" she heard the man yell from afar, his voice full of fear and confusion. "You can't… we can't kill her! The boss said…!"

He ceased to speak the moment Mars turned towards him. She stared him down for a few seconds, and without any fanfare grabbed onto the Team Galactic symbol adorning her chest. She effortlessly ripped it from its seams as if it were paper. Janus and Dione's gasp was the only thing Inyssa heard as she saw the logo slowly falling to the ground.

"Commander…" Dione's tone was thin and weak, and his eyes were wide open in shock. "Why…"

"I have no more reason to be a part of Team Galactic," she said plainly, "which means you two don't have to take orders from me anymore."

The two grunts were too surprised to speak, which she took as a cue to elaborate.

"Well, what will it be? If you're still loyal to Team Galactic you will stop me from killing this girl." Her blade drew even closer to Inyssa's face, who struggled to even move. "Unless you're too scared to fight for your ideals…" her eyes went from Janus to Dione, "or too eager to get revenge to care."

The men exchanged looks, and a plea could be seen on Janus' face. Dione deliberated for a few heartbeats, sweat running down his forehead and lips quivering. He held the silence for what seemed like an eternity, but finally lowered his head in shame.

Inyssa didn't have problem understanding his gesture, nor the disappointment on Janus' expression. They would let her die. Mars seemed to arrive to the same conclusion, and looked satisfied with it.

"This is the true nature of people," she declared, smiling widely. "You can be as brave and smart as you want, but when faced with overwhelming power there are very few who can stick to their guns and die standing up."

She felt the tip of her scythe arm just under her chin, and the pressure forced her to look up at Mars.

"And that's the way it should be. The idea of the human spirit is a sickness, one that spreads with the words and actions of those suffering from it. In the end, self preservation is the only thing we need as a species," her voice got more ragged and loud as she spoke. "Fortunately for you, I'm here to rid you of that sickness before it's too late."

A thin line of blood coated the silver blade as she pushed just a bit stronger, causing Inyssa to wince. She couldn't move, couldn't even open her mouth to speak.

"However, if you're willing to beg for your life, to show me that you're not that far gone yet…" she paused for a moment, expression unreadable. "…I'll let you live. It's your choice, and trust me when I say this: it will be for your own good."

Her words caused a storm inside her. She would've almost preferred not to be given a choice, to just fall under her blade and that would be it.

Her entire body was shaking in fear, and the sweat which fell down her face was a good indicator of what her body thought of the offer. Someplace inside her mind a voice screamed desperately, it urged her to do anything she could to save her own life. She couldn't die here, she couldn't leave Barry and everyone else…

She swallowed hard, and tears started to run down her face. She couldn't do it, and she'd known that from the moment Mars had delivered her ultimatum. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she begged for her life against someone as wretched as her.

Their eyes met, and she parted her trembling lips to reply.

"I'm... not gonna give you the satisfaction," she stated, voice barely a whisper.

Mars shook her head slightly, "How disappointing."

The pressure under her chin disappeared, and Inyssa's head almost fell from the nausea alone. Through blurry shapes she saw Mars raise her scythe towards the sky, and in that single, frozen moment she was ashamed to admit that she regretted her choice.

"Stop!"

Both women turned, startled, towards the man who'd just yelled. Inyssa could barely make up the shape of Janus as he took a step forward, both hands grasping something small. A gun, pointed directly at Mars.

Dione was the first to react, and through the shock in his expression he drew his pistol as well and pointed it at his friend. His hands were shaking, while Janus' were not.

"What the hell are you doing!?" the shorter man screamed. "Janus, drop the gun!"

"No!" his yell was a lot stronger than his friend's, and Inyssa could feel the determination behind his voice, "Dione, this isn't right! We can't just… we can't just let her kill a kid in front of us! This isn't the reason we joined Team Galactic!"

Dione lowered the gun for a moment, low stutters coming from his mouth.

"W-who cares about her?" he asked, pointing at Inyssa. "We'll get killed if we try to help her and she deserves…!"

Janus stomped the ground with one foot, and his skin grew paler, "She doesn't deserve to die! Mars is the one who took your eye, she's the one responsible for all this!"

They both stared at each other, not willing to pull the trigger just yet. Mars seemed to notice this, because her smile came back.

"Well, would you look at this," her voice sent a shiver through both men, who turned towards her in terror. "It looks like the sickness is spreading."

And with just those words, their wills cracked. The whole weight of Mars' malice fell on top of everyone around her.

It was the worst thing she'd ever experienced, worse than Fantina's strange aura and even worse than the painful cold of the man she'd met in Lake Valor. Every nerve in her body screamed in terror, and she would've gladly screamed if she could move any part of her body.

Janus and Dione dropped their weapons, the sudden realization of their coming fate paralyzing them completely. Mars' footsteps were the only sound any of them could hear as she approached, scythe brandished.

Then it disappeared, just as fast as it'd fell over them. Mars' eyebrows perched up, and her gaze veered left towards the trees leading to the city. She lowered her arm and sighed.

"What terrible timing."

A blue shape jumped from the darkness of the forest, a buzzing blur which threw itself at the two grunts, so fast they couldn't react.

The first punch caught Dione in the stomach, and even before the pain hit him the Pokemon jumped towards Janus and delivered a lighting fast chop to the back of his neck. Their bodies hit the floor only a second after, immobile.

Inyssa recognized him then, as he stood proudly and stared them down. It was Maylene's Lucario, which meant…

"Good thinking with the emergency beacon, Inyssa."

The Gym leader emerged from behind a large, crooked tree, her words giving Inyssa the closest thing to hope she'd felt in a long time. Two other people appeared at her side; a woman she'd never seen before and Marco, the man which had welcomed them to the Gym.

Both of them rushed towards Inyssa and grabbed her under the shoulders, lifting her body without difficulty. Maylene walked slowly behind them, fingers curled into fists.

"Take her to the hospital," she ordered, her voice as firm as steel. "I will take care of this."

Inyssa tried to protest, but the only thing which came out of her mouth was a couple of dry coughs. It took her a few seconds to finally form the words and get them out.

"W-wait." she struggled against the arms holding her, still dizzy. "Y-you can't fight her, she… she can…"

"Transform, I know."

Surprise was clear not only on her expression, but on Mars' as well. The woman's lips curved slightly upwards, one eyebrow arched.

"Barry told me," Maylene continued as she cracked her knuckles, and seemingly reading her mind spoke again, "He's fine. They will take you to him."

She tugged again to free her arms, though strength had long since left her body, "She's a monster… you can't fight her, she'll…"

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't underestimate me," Maylene cut her off. "I wouldn't be much of a Gym leader if I couldn't defeat a wretch like her, would I? Lucario and I will take care of the situation, so don't worry about it anymore."

Mars' high pitched laugh echoed through the forest, sending waves of terror through Inyssa's body.

"An entire Gym leader just to myself? Oh, how you spoil me," she smiled widely, and raised her scythe to the side. "Very well Inyssa, I'll let you go. I'll come looking for you once the time is right though, so I suggest you stay alert until then."

She wanted to protest more, wanted to scream and free herself so she could fight as well, but she couldn't bring herself to. She was too scared, too weak to even consider it. Shame filled the pit of her stomach as she lowered her head.

Maylene turned to her, and the sudden harshness in her voice startled her.

"The Association's forces will arrive soon, so you shouldn't worry about any of them escaping," she said. "Also… I found your backpack and belt. Next time you might stand a better chance if you let your friends fight with you."

She gulped, and slowly raised her gaze towards the Gym leader.

"They… they would've been killed," she whispered, voice broken.

"Perhaps, but fighting was their choice. Stealing that from them is not what a true trainer would do," she said, her back to Inyssa. "Now go, and apologize to them. I'll take it from here."

She felt her body being carried backwards. All willpower had evaporated from her soul, and she could only stare as the shapes of both women grew smaller and smaller in front of her eyes, and her vision became blurrier.

Her head bobbled slightly, too heavy for her to lift it anymore. As her eyes were glued to the ground she felt tears running down her dirt covered cheeks.

She parted her lips ever so slightly, and the whisper that came out was immediately extinguished by a weak gust of wind.

"I'm sorry…"


	30. Plans Within Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAANNND I'M BACK! Sorry for the huge delay on chapters, but I was too busy doing Nanowrimo, which I won! Yay me. In any case chapters will return to their normal schedule now.

Maylene took a single, perfect step forward, and waited.

In the situation she'd been thrown in, there was no reason not to. As her mother had so thoroughly tried to beat into her thick skull, patience was key.

 _Never attack first against an opponent you're not sure you can beat_ , her voice echoed in her mind.  _Wait, observe and make decisions from there._

She approached with swift, slow movements and Lucario did the same from behind Mars. They both shared the same pose: left leg and arm forward and knees lowered. A stance which left very few openings, one which she'd practiced to perfection.

"So young and already a Gym leader, eh?"

Mars scratched her cheek, leaning her head to the side in a casual manner. Her apparent unwillingness to fight didn't fool Maylene, who noticed the way those cold red eyes were completely focused on them.

"And you look so much like Mary, too," she continued, forming a lopsided smile. "Did you know I faced against her during my own League challenge, way back then? I remember it like it was yesterday."

A burst of heat grew from her chest outwards through her veins, but Maylene didn't let it affect her. So she was trying to taunt her? Or did she genuinely didn't know her mother had…?

Whatever the case, it didn't matter. Words, sharp or dull, had no place in a proper fight. She would not let a snake's tongue sway her from her current objective.

"I respected your mother. She was a good, honest woman, and one of the few people who could really see the big picture." Her expression softened for a moment. "Your eyes tell me you're no much different from her. A bit younger and more naïve perhaps, but you certainly deserve to live more than the trash you just rescued." She pronounced those last words with utter disgust, her nose crinkling. "I would hate to harm someone like you. Step away and let me escape, for your own good."

Maylene didn't move an inch, her expression as stalwart as it'd ever been. At least five heartbeats passed before Mars gave up, sighing to the side.

"One after another, I just keep running into stupid kids ready to throw their lives away." She shook her head, placing her hands on her hips. "Oh well, broken bones and cut limbs can be a good learning experience I'm sure."

 _Dear god this woman loves the sound of her own voice_ , Maylene thought.

"You said the Association's forces would be here soon?" Mars asked. "Then I guess we better get started."

Mars swatted at the air with her rightarm, which had started melting into a shapeless, pink gum. Maylene's body reacted automatically; she dropped her stance and leaped forward with all the strength in her legs. Both eyes were entirely focused on the woman's transforming arm, while one of her hands grabbed what hung behind her back.

She brandished the two bokken, cutting the air in front of her. They felt reassuringly familiar in her hands.

A distinct blue glow caught her attention from behind Mars; that of Lucario materializing his own weapon. Both of them closed their eyes at the same time and, without words, understood perfectly what the other was thinking.

Terrible waves of… something she couldn't describe exuded from Mars' body, which she could feel a lot clearer than anyone else. Its weight was wide and massive, but unlike Inyssa she could bear it without her body faltering, thanks to the way Lucario had trained her.

She stopped a stone throw's away from Mars, her bare feet sliding on the soft dirt. Her fingers spun the wooden blade on her right hand until its tip was pointed at her thigh. She raised it to the sky and, with the strength of her previous momentum, threw it like a lance. It flew directly towards the redhead's chest.

Mars took a sudden step back, her sharp gaze set on the bokken. She raised her left hand and shielded herself with it, attempting to catch it.

Lucario appeared behind her in a flash, a glowing staff of blue energy held by his raised paws. With a powerful roar he lunged down, aiming at her spine. Mars' eyes went wide as she felt his presence, and almost too fast to follow she threw herself to the side. The wooden blade crashed against the Pokemon's weapon, shattering into a dozen splintered pieces.

The transformation was completed then, and Mars smiled. Landing somewhat unevenly she stomped the ground with her feet, and spun in place.

Maylene barely had time to duck. The dark tendril ruffled her hair as it passed over her like a bullet. Lucario wasn't as lucky; his feet touched the ground a second too late as he saw it fall over him. He shielded himself with the aura staff, which took most of the hit and shattered into a puff of light.

Gasping, she looked up at what'd attacked them. From the tip of the woman's right elbow grew a black, uniform tentacle as thick as her torso and as long as she was tall. It squirmed and coiled into itself, bouncing on the floor with a wet and unpleasant sound.

She'd only seen a Tentacruel once, but she would've recognized one of its tendrils anywhere.

No time to step back now. Mars wound back her shoulder and threw the tentacle forward in an arc. It came at her from the right with a speed that by all means it shouldn't have had, leaving her unable to dodge. Gritting her teeth, she covered her sides with both arms and waited for the impact.

Blue flashed across her eyes as Lucario jumped between them, stopping the tentacle with both paws. Its force raised a cloud of dust between them, almost knocking him off his feet. His muscles were as tensed as an iron bar, and his legs shook from the impact.

 _That thing would've broken my arms_ , Maylene realized _. I can't get hit by any of her attacks. I need to act as a support._

Lucario bared his fangs and snarled at Mars defiantly. He grounded himself and with all the power in his arms tugged at the tentacle backwards. It was sudden enough to startle Mars, making her body tumble forward.

_She's out of balance, this is my chance!_

Her fingers grazed the handle of one of the small knives hidden in her belt, and without hesitation she threw it forward. It flew like an arrow towards Mars' face, and if it weren't for the way its metal glistened under the light of the sun the woman might've not noticed it. The tentacle grew inwards, shrinking until it was small enough to slip through Lucario's hands. With swift movement the fingers of her left hand clasped around the knife's handle, so close to her face it almost scratched her nose.

That's when their opportunity came. Mars jumped back to gain distance, and the back of her heel hit a thick root sprouting from the ground. Her eyes went wide as she extended both arms to the side to regain balance.

"Aura Sphere!"

Ignoring the pain thundering through his body Lucario jumped up towards her. Both steaming paws joined at his side, and in the space between them materialized a swirling, pulsing ball of aura. It's weight and power was so intense it started burning and skinning the fur of his palms. A few feet below, its force rustled the grass.

With a pained roar he sent both paws forward, releasing the attack. It fell like a bullet towards Mars' face, burning the air in its path. In the fleeting moment before the impact she saw her raise her right arm.

The explosion sent a gust of wind in all directions, rustling Maylene's hair and forcing her to cover her face.

A metallic, gong like sound reached her. Mars stumbled a few feet back, her newly transformed arm covering her face. It was black and square-shaped, with a distinct metallic gleam as sunlight reflected off it. She lowered it slowly, revealing the small circle of purple over her now broken nose. Dark threads of blood traveled from her lips down to her chin, staining the ground beneath her as they fell.

 _An Aggron's hand?_  Maylene thought, narrowing her eyes.  _It's the only way she could've blocked that._

"That was one hell of an attack," Mars laughed, brow furrowed in pain. "I actually felt it inside my head."

Maylene looked at her partner, worried. His arms hung to the side, blood falling from his palms to the ground. His eyes were dull and tired, and his breathing was too heavy. She gulped and pushed down the panic building inside her. She had to think her way out of this fight.

 _She seems to only be able to transform one limb at a time,_ the rational part of her mind told her,  _Though... why does she choose her right arm every time? From the way she's been fighting I could've sworn she was left-handed. And... now that I'm looking more closely, why is her right arm much paler than the other one?_ She narrowed her eyes, then shook her head slightly. _No... that doesn't matter_. _From what I've seen transformation takes at least a full second to finish; if we both attack at the same time then she'll only be able to block one of us._

Lucario understood her plan by reading her aura, and with enormous effort started walking towards Mars' side, while Maylene did the same in the opposite direction. They couldn't be too careful, not with the opponent they were facing.

"Already formed another plan?" Mars smiled. "Good; kids your age should be lively and smart. Thanks for letting me catch my breath, by the way."

 _She could counter attack_ , Maylene thought, paying no mind to her rambling.  _I'm sure she wants to take me out first_.  _I can't approach carelessly, I need to use my bokken in the exact moment..._

Her eyes went wide with realization. There was only one moment where she knew exactly how Mars would act; when she launched an attack.

She nodded, and Lucario understood. Lowering his knees he threw himself towards her and wound back his right arm, though the punch came a lot slower than his previous attack. Mars noticed this, and thinking it a result of his exhaustion lowered herself just enough for his fist to fly over her head. As she did so she extended her right arm back, which started shifting once again.

A slight change in the wind alerted her of Maylene, who'd ran to her blind spot with her wooden blade in hand, ready to break it over her face. With her current position, one leg back and the other lifted, it seemed too late to even try to dodge, and the Gym Leader knew this. A slight grin formed on her face.

A dark shape began to form on Mars' lower back, and a second and a half after something long and sharp lounged toward Maylene's face. A terrible sense of dread fell over her body as realization hit her; Mars had used her own trick against her. She couldn't stop her movements.

Lucario aimed his left paw at his trainer, and with a snarl he expelled a powerful gust of aura.

It felt as she'd been hit with a small hurricane. Her body flew to the left, and as the blade passed over her it only managed to scratch the skin under her left eye. Through the pain she saw the floor approaching rapidly, and with a twirl of her legs she landed one hand on the ground and pushed herself back, falling on her knees. She grabbed the left part of her abdomen, where Lucario's attack had hit. It was painful, yes, but surely not as much as the alternative. Her thumb caressed the slight cut at the side of her nose, cleaning some of the blood off.

 _If not for Lucario, that would've taken my eye_.

The thing which had attacked her now moved from side to side from Mars' lower back, coiling around her body. It was a thick, black tail with a jagged red blade at the end; a Seviper's tail.

Realization hit her then, with enough force to make her shake. With urgency she looked down at the thumb stained wih her blood, though she didn't notice any strange color in it.

"Don't worry, it's not venomous like the real thing," Mars assured her. "I can only copy shape and consistency, I'm afraid."

After reeling for a second at the stupidity of being told such a weakness, Maylene stood straight and started walking around her slowly. If she could create limbs from any part of her body then she had basically no blind spots, as long as she could feel where an attack was coming from.

_That time it formed slower, though. It seems the transformation is only that fast when she does it on her right arm._

She grit her teeth, a nervous drop of sweat falling down her forehead. The woman standing before her was a tough opponent, more so than any she'd faced before. In terms of stamina, focus and technique Maylene knew she had the advantage, but she couldn't even come close to matching Mars' strength, speed and overall flexibility.

She didn't adhere to any martial arts style, which was bothersome to deal with due to unpredictability alone. But worst than that was something she'd realized after only exchanging a couple blows: Mars was insanely more experienced than her. Whoever she was, she'd surely been fighting her entire life, which put Maylene at a clear disadvantage. A fighter needed either technique or experience; preferably both. The more you had of one the more you could compensate for the other, and she wasn't sure she was skilled enough to offset the balance in her favor.

 _That's why you have Lucario_ , she assured herself.

Still, attacking from a distance wouldn't suffice anymore. Her only realistic choice was to put herself in danger and act as a decoy with her remaining bokken, while Lucario tried to hit her from another angle. The risk was too big, and she figured she'd have a ten percent chance of surviving unscathed.

Smiling, she wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her palm. Her brow furrowed as she lowered her knees in anticipation.

It was a risk she was willing to take.

"Dust cloud, now!"

Lucario's paw fell with enough strength to make the ground shake, and letting out a roar he sent a powerful shockwave of energy through it. The dirt and dust around them vibrated for a moment before exploding upwards as if the ground itself were erupting. Thick enough to obscure everyone's view, which is exactly what Maylene had planned. She closed her eyes and concentrated as she ran forward. Ripples of energy grew outwards from Lucario and Mars' aura, pinpointing their exact location. The woman had taken a step back and started transforming her right arm into something long and smooth, with no specific shape to it.

Another tentacle? She was probably planning to use that spin move, both for protection and to clear the cloud of dust. They needed to act fast.

The tentacle lunged at her, and just before it connected she slid under it with one foot and one hand on the ground, while Lucario jumped up, winding his arm back.

Mars realized she hadn't hit anything, and even when while out of balance she was quick to react. Raising her left leg she kicked the air in front of her. Maylene felt this and while standing up moved slightly to the side, avoiding the kick by less than an inch.

"NOW!"

Miraculously, Lucario's punch actually connected with Mars' head. She felt the impact echo all around them as the woman's body veered down, eyes and mouth open wide in pain. Wasting no time Maylene jumped behind her and with a well placed elbow on her kidney got her to slightly turn. She grabbed her from under her arms and forced her torso up, giving her Pokemon a perfect target.

This wasn't part of their plan, but she couldn't waste such an opportunity. In those fading, short moments she thought clearly about what she wanted Lucario to do, and he understood. Doubt and fear tainted his aura, though it wasn't strong enough to surpass his loyalty towards his trainer. With a sorrowful nod he planted his feet firmly on the ground. His aura traveled from every part of his body towards his right arm, and before Mars could react he threw a devastating punch, hitting her just below the ribcage.

The energy exploded in a cone in front of him. Maylene felt it in her insides even though she'd been shielded by Mars' body, and the intense pain told her at least one of her ribs had probably been broken. Not that she had time to think about it as they were expelled backwards like a cannonball. She landed on her side, cheek bouncing against the dirt beneath it.

The world turned into a blur of colors and waving shapes. She rolled to the side and breathed in deeply, trying to force her vision back to focus. The pain in her abdomen was pulsing and burning, almost unbearable, but she couldn't allow herself to collapse yet.

At her feet laid Mars, barely holding herself up to her knees and one hand over her stomach. Her face was twisted into a terrible mask of pain and rage, a spider web of red clawing from the edges of her eyes. She was breathing heavily through her mouth, under which was a huge pile of blood and vomit.

Stumbling on every step Maylene got to her feet, her sense of balance almost nonexistent. If she could just restrain Mars…

"Ha…ha…" The woman's laugh reached her. "Nice one, Gym…leader."

She couldn't help but take a step back, eyes wide open. How could she…?

Mars looked at her, and Maylene could swear the temperature dropped to zero. The skin of the woman's face was stretched unnaturally into an enormous grin. Her teeth were stained with blood, which ran down her chin into the ground, and her eyes almost glowed with hatred.

"You think… that's enough…" with effort she pushed herself to her feet, her entire body shaking, "…to put me down?"

The full brunt of her malice fell over the clearing, and Maylene barely protected herself as a shiver ran down her spine. Next to her Lucario stared at the woman incredulous, snout down and paws shaking. His chest rose up and down with his jagged breathing, as the last attack had drained all but the last remains of his strength.

Mars took a careful step forward, both arms hanging under her. Maylene and her Pokemon moved back a few inches, shock alone preventing them from attacking.

She tilted her head to the side, dark shadows falling over her eyes, "People stronger than you… have tried before. I'm not going down until…"

A violent coughing fit fell over her, and more drops of blood stained the grass in front of her feet. At some point her coughs shifted into a high pitched, soft laughter. When she raised her head again Maylene saw her right arm start to bend and re-shape itself, though it seemed a lot slower than before. It finally shifted into a longer one, covered in white fur. Enormous black claws grew from her fingers, looking sharp enough to cut her into ribbons. The back of her mind recognized the Zangoose's arm, but she couldn't do anything with that information. She was getting closer, almost on top of her and…

A sound like thunder broke through the forest, snapping Maylene and Lucario out of the spell they were under. Mars' eyes went as wide as possible as a scream of pain got caught in her throat. Balance left her as her knees hit the floor violently. A small circle of dark red appeared in the middle of her left thigh, which grew in size as the blood stained the cloth covering it.

Maylene took a step back, "Wh-"

Lucario's sensitive ears picked up on the sound of dozens of footsteps approaching from all around them, and she caught up a few seconds after. She saw a figure appear from the darkness of the forest, a pistol on her hands and two eyes brimming with fury behind it. She looked like a woman in her forties, with short black hair and stubby complexion.

Before she could ask who she was at least thirty more figures emerged from all around her, all dressed in the same black and blue uniform, brandishing similar weapons as the strange woman.

 _The Association's forces_ , Maylene thought as a smile of relief formed in her lips.  _They sure took their sweet time_.

"I can't thank you enough for your service, Gym leader," the woman's voice was soft and polite, though she could feel the raw anger behind it. "We'll take care of it from here."

The woman raised her free hand, and every one of her employees pointed at Mars with their respective weapons. Mars struggled to even move, a low growl of pain escaping her lips. Her eyes were sunken and pale, as if she were struggling to stay conscious. Even still she lightly raised her head to look at the person who'd shot her.

"It's… you," she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper. "Sarah… huh? Long time no see. Sorry for what I did to your son's Pokemon."

Maylene couldn't believe the nerve and confidence Mars still displayed, even in such a perilous situation. She saw the woman apparently named Sarah as her nose flared, and the hand holding the gun shook ever so slightly. Her finger caressed the trigger.

"You are accused of stealing, kidnapping, terrorism and murder. In the name of the League Association I hereby place you under arrest." Her statement was almost a growl, and her eyebrows were so close they almost looked like one. "However that doesn't mean I don't get to shoot you again if you misbehave. I'm willing to do it as many times as it takes, you bastard."

As consciousness left her, Mars let out a faint, confident snicker.

"Oh well, what can you do."

And with those words her eyes fell shut and she collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious.

 

* * *

 

 

Cyrus stared at the blinking light of his monitor for a lot longer than he needed to, only coming to his senses when someone knocked on his door.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes for a few moments. They stung badly. How long had it been since he'd gotten any sleep? Two days? Four? There was no time to do so, not when his plans required every free minute he could muster.

If the word  _like_  still had any meaning to him, he would've applied it to sleep deprivation. It was the only time he could pretend to feel something, the only time his mind even came close to functioning as it was meant to. He couldn't pass through any of the other doors, after all. Sleep had been nothing but a void ever since the incident. Forgetting was impossible. Madness was unattainable.

He would've considered the fourth door if it weren't for the only thing still left in him; his ambition. Were it not for that; death might've been an option.

It was unfortunate, especially for his enemies. He had a job to do.

Lazily he got to his feet, and urged the people outside let themselves in.

The first to enter was Saturn, hands behind his back and expression unreadable. He took two steps and bowed down to him, posture was firm and perfect. Jupiter was next, hitting Saturn with her shoulder as she stood next to him. Dry stains of what he imagined was alcohol stained parts of her uniform, which was poorly kept. Charon followed soon after, adjusting his glasses and holding a heavy looking folder under his right arm.

His commanders. The three people closest to him; who knew more than anyone else about him.

Part of him wished he could feel anything at the sight of them.

"I will make this brief."

Everyone shifted uncomfortably on their feet. Cyrus' voice snuck up on them like an unexpected, freezing gust of wind. None of them could stand to look at his eyes for more than a few moments.

"Mars has failed in her mission," he stated, as calmly as if he were telling the weather. "She's been captured by the Association, and so have many of our grunts."

Their reactions were predictable. Charon muttered something under his breath and shook his head. Saturn's eyes went wide in shock, and he let out a forced gasp. Jupiter seemed surprised for a moment, and then laughed.

"I knew I should've gone with her!" Saturn frowned, clenching his fists. "Sir, I am so sorry! I was the one who let her take care of the mission!"

"Eh, who cares?" Jupiter shrugged. "That psychopath got what was coming to her, if you ask me. Good fucking riddance."

"How can you say that!? She is one of us, you heartless…!"

"Enough."

Silence fell on the room as soon as Cyrus spoke.

He turned to Saturn, "You know it's protocol to notify me whenever a mission changes hands. Handing this particular one to Mars was the worst decision you could've made."

Saturn lowered his head, face turned into a mask of shame. He couldn't speak, couldn't even apologize, not while being looked at with those eyes. But Cyrus wasn't mad at him, as much as he would've liked to.

"You will be processed next time you make a mistake of this magnitude," he said, plainly. "And as for you, Jupiter."

The woman stood as straight as her alcohol filled body allowed her, too scared of her boss to say anything.

"You know very well what Mars holds. Whatever happens to her, we cannot let that Ditto fall into the enemy's hands."

She bowed slightly, "Y-yes sir. I apologize for my insolence."

"The Association doesn't want us to know where they're taking them to," he continued, crossing his arms. "Charon, I assume the locator installed in Mars' body is still active?"

He nodded slowly, a constant frown on his face.

"Unless they uses some kind of localized EMP, it should still work."

Cyrus nodded, "Our first step is to locate her. Once we've done that the rest of our plan will unfold smoothly."

"W-what about the others, sir?"

Saturn raised his hand hesitantly, irises shrunken. His voice carried an unmistakable hopeful tone, which Cyrus didn't fail to pick up on. He had to choose his words carefully; Saturn was too important of a right hand to upset. As much as he didn't like the idea, he needed to maintain the young man's idealistic nature if he was to use him for his plans.

"It is unfortunate, but I already used the failsafe on them," he said. "We can't have them divulge everything they know about us. Do you understand?"

"But…" Saturn's lips quivered, and his eyes seemed to water. "They're part of our family, they would never…."

"It has happened before," he cut him off, "and we don't know what kind of interrogating tactics the Association has. It was the only choice."

Saturn looked like he wanted to protest further, but after a few moments he lowered his head in defeat and nodded. Next to him Jupiter rolled her eyes as obviously as she could.

Good enough.

"Jupiter," Cyrus spoke again. "Follow Charon to the lab, learn Mars' coordinates and gather a team to retrieve Ditto."

The woman formed a non too sane smile.

"What if Mars resists?"

Cyrus stood silent for a moment. He'd considered the possibility, of course. In fact it had been the one that crossed his mind as soon as he'd learned the news of his commander's fate. There was a non insignificant chance that she might've learned of his truce with Shadi. No negotiation would be possible at that point.

"If she resists, deal with her in any way you see fit," he said. "We only need Ditto unharmed."

She smiled as if receiving a present, and then bowed properly to him.

"What about… the girl?" Saturn asked, regaining his composure. "Inyssa. What do we do with her?"

"I will deal with her personally."

Everyone's eyes fell on him for the first time. The startled looks on his commanders' faces would've been amusing to him in the past.

"She and her friend have grown too bothersome to ignore," he continued, "and they will continue to do so. Their potential as trainers is dangerous, and they need to be taken care of as soon as possible." He turned towards the old man. "Charon, how is the Unovan project coming along?"

He seemed shook for a moment, before clearing his throat and adjusting his tie.

"Colress' instructions have proved immensely useful for containing it," he said. "It's still unstable, but we should be able to have it fully under control in a week or so."

He nodded thoughtfully, "We've been gifted with a gratuitous opportunity, it seems."

"Wh-what do you mean?" asked Saturn.

"Both these missions, it would be benefitial to make them ocurr around the same time." He tapped his chin, eyes narrowed. "The Festival of Spirit in Celestic Town will be held soon as well. And if I'm not mistaken, Inyssa and her friend might pass through there during that time."

Everyone in the room stared at him in confusion, but his mind was too busy for him to notice. He looked to the side, at the gigantic map of Sinnoh pasted on his wall.

"Both missions will act as a smokescreen for the other," he said. "Jupiter will be in charge of the jailbreak, and I will make use of the Unovan project to take care of those two."

He didn't fail to notice Saturn's look of horror, even if he didn't protest. Indeed, the Unovan project might be more than overkill to deal with amateur trainers, but at least it would guarantee his success. Besides, he planned to use it for something much greater that day.

With some luck, he might even be able to get rid of the Champion herself.

"Go off then," he told Jupiter and Charon. "There is something I must discuss with Saturn."

After some bows and empty words of appreciation he was left alone with his right hand. Saturn waited patiently for his own orders, standing as still as a statue. So young, and yet so loyal. He'd been lucky to attract someone like him to his cause.

"Your mission will involve something different," Cyrus stated, voice full of exhaustion. "It is time we deal with the Ursa situation."

He saw the young man's expression turn into one of anger and sadness so fast he wished he could be jealous.

"Again, I apologize for not catching her last time," he bowed.

"No need," Cyrus said. "In any case, we know her last location was Solaceon, where she stole the research Willow had done for us."

He started walking around the room, hands behind his back, "Jupiter has been working on recreating it, but her progress is not fast enough. Getting those papers back is our top priority at the moment, closely followed by retrieving Azelf itself." Everything around him seemed to become colder the more he spoke. "Fortunately, the research is too complicated for someone like Ursa to understand. This means that her most likely next course of action will be to find someone who can interpret the papers for her."

Saturn spoke up, "Do you think she'll go to the Association? Wait, no…" he shook his head. "There's no way she'll ever trust them."

"Exactly. And there aren't many people she could ask for help that aren't associated with them. This leaves two options for her."

He raised his hand lazily and formed a two, "First, she might try to kidnap one of their scientists and force them to interpret the papers. After that, she'll kill them so the information doesn't fall on the Association's hands."

"She won't do that," Saturn assured him, brow furrowed. "Ursa is… a traitor, and she's horrible, but she wouldn't kill someone innocent that has nothing to do with us."

Cyrus knew this, of course. That girl was the epitome of everything Team Galactic fought against. Too idealistic, too emotional, too bent on everyone around her. He wished he had the ability to be disgusted by all those things.

"Her second option is to kidnap either Jupiter or Charon. However that would mean breaking into our base, and she knows there is no chance of such a plan succeeding in her current state," he took a deep breath, considering the possibility. "To do such a thing she would need to fully recharge Azelf's power."

Saturn's eyes went wide as realization hit him.

"Lake Valor!" he yelled. "Do you think that's where she's heading?"

"It's my best guess at the moment," he said. "You are the one in charge of that area, are you not?"

"I… yes, of course." Saturn gulped. "Are you thinking of…"

"Setting a trap. As soon as she sets foot on the lake's cave we will capture them."

Hesitation flashed across Saturn's face for a moment, and Cyrus was reminded that affection wasn't something that evaporated so quickly. The boy still had fond memories of her, it seemed.

"Y-yes sir, that is a genius plan," Saturn smiled nervously. "In that case, I will do my best to lay the preparations. I will not fail you again, I swear!"

"Very well," Cyrus nodded dispassionately. "That is all. You can go now."

The young man bowed firmly to him, and then turned around towards the door. Cyrus let out a tired sigh, his eyelids almost falling close by themselves. As much as it pained him, maybe it was time he got some sleep.

"Wait, sir!"

He blinked fast, shaking the exhaustion off. Saturn was talking to him again, a nervous look on his face.

"I almost forgot to mention," he said. "A few days ago, while I was scouting around the lake, I came across this boy…"

Cyrus had to endure the tale for almost two minutes, still struggling not to fall asleep on the spot. Even if his commander had a point and there was potential for a useful new recruit in the horizon, he couldn't bring himself to care.

"…and I really think he embodies our ideals, sir!" Saturn finished, grinning from ear to ear. "If I may, can I try to recruit him? Nothing would make me happier than having him as part of our family."

Family. The word resonated strangely inside Cyrus, bouncing off as if it had no place to land. It simply flew around for a few moments before dissipating, leaving him with an odd feeling of emptiness.

"Yes, of course," he nodded absentmindedly. "You have permission to do so."


	31. Things Left Unsaid

Inyssa felt like she'd been stabbed in the stomach with a lightning bolt.

Waking came as a jolt, like that of falling backwards on a chair. Her eyelids moved tentatively, she parted her lips to breathe, and soon wholly regretted it. Not only was her mouth full of wet sand but her teeth were made of broken glass. As far as she could tell, anyways.

"Hgh…"

She moved her arms and legs a few inches, not noticing any pain. Slowly she wormed her way up the bed under her, and fully opened her eyes. White and pastel blue as far as she could see, which wasn't much. Probably a hospital room, judging by the acidic smell of disinfectants and cheap perfume.

A pair of bored eyes stared at her from the sill of the door. An old man with moon silver hair, wearing a white lab coat.

"Had yourself a nice nap?" he said, voice like the creak of wind against an old oak. "Hope it was enough to calm your nerves. How are you feeling?"

She opened her mouth to speak, and the needle like pain in her jaw almost made her eyes water. Slowly she tried again, more carefully.

"Where… am I?"

He walked towards her, each step resounding like a gong inside her head, and sat in a stool next to her bed. Taking a small flashlight from his front pocket he shone it at her eyes, getting a low growl as a response.

"Maylene's disciples brought you here a few hours ago," he said while studying her face. "You were a bit of an annoying little shit, let me tell you. You wouldn't stop complaining and yelling about your friend, so I told my Venomoth to use Sleep Powder on you."

Three things came to mind. First, a slight indignation at his blunt, yet casual insult. Second, that she didn't think doctors were allowed to talk like that to patients, and third that as soon as he said those words memories came rushing back at her. Mars, Barry and Shadi. Maylene and her Lucario, and her immobile body being carried by…

She tried to speak, but the man raised his palm towards her, eyebrows knit.

"Don't start again," he sighed. "Your friend's in one of the other rooms, and he's perfectly fine aside from some bruising. And before you ask, no, you can't go visit him until your guardian gives permission."

She tilted her head to the side and narrowed her eyes. Guardian? What did he mean by guardian? Before she could ask the man grazed her lower jaw, and the sudden pain almost made her punch him in the face.

"You got hit pretty hard," he said, lips forming a thin line. "Not hard enough to break bones, but barely. You've got some nasty bruises on your stomach and lower jaw, and it won't be long before they start swelling," he moved her head with his fingers, staring intently at the wound. "I already prescribed some mild painkillers with your guardian's permission. Hopefully they'll dull the pain until it becomes more bearable."

She placed her hand on top of her left cheek and winced at the immediate pain. That's when she noticed she was wearing only her plain white shirt, and swiftly noticed her coat, hat, scarf and belt hanging from a coat rack next to the door.

Her Pokemon…

Part of her wanted to release them and apologize like Maylene had told her to do, but guilt and pain combined made a good argument against it.

"Alright, I'm going to need you to wait here," the man said, startling her. "Your guardian said to alert her when you woke up. Don't try to escape or I'll tie your arms and legs to the bed."

She scowled at him. Her throat was so dry it was killing her, "Uh…yeah. Make sure to bring the heaviest restraints," she smiled haphazardly. "Also some water."

Soon she was left alone with that disgusting citric smell and the gleam of her Pokeballs taunting her. Her mind was a strange haze, a bunch of stupid clouds and cotton and other things of similar consistency clogging the gears of her brain.

She tried moving her fingers, and experienced the horrible feeling of a million ants running under her skin towards her arm and the rest of her body. It brought bad memories with it, memories of the last time she'd woken up in a hospital with a sense of shame and disappointment.

"Did you sleep well?"

The ants almost jumped out of her skin, in the same way she did. She turned towards the sound of that voice so fast she felt dizzy, setting her eyes on the gigantic curtain separating her from the other bed in the room. Callused fingers grabbed the right edge of it and moved it to the side.

Maylene smiled from the other bed, heavy bags under her eyes. The first thing she noticed was the band aid over her cheek, and the second was that she wasn't wearing her usual clothes. Unlike Inyssa she was covered in the typical patient gown, and there was a metal pole holding a plastic bag next to her, with a translucid cable connected to her wrist.

Her eyes widened as she looked lower. Everything from her hips to just under her breasts was covered by a thick layer of bandages, over which was placed a bag full of ice.

The Gym Leader noticed her watching, and let out a short laugh, "Looks bad, doesn't it? I'd like to say it's was Mars' doing, but it was my own stupidity," she said. "But hey, at least ribs heal, right?"

Inyssa parted her dry lips and asked, "W-what happened to you?"

Maylene gave her a swift and concise explanation of her fight against Mars, right up until when the Association forces arrived. Her mouth hung open as she heard it, not believing her ears.

 _Just like that?_  The voice whined inside her head.  _She was defeated so easily?_

"…and while they restrained her that Frontier Brain Palmer took care of the rest of the grunts in the city," she concluded, taking a deep breath. "Quite the ordeal, really."

 _Quite the ordeal_  was about as simple of a statement as one could make about the situation, but she figured it was just Maylene's way of putting it. She tried to say something funny or somewhat crude to alleviate the topic, but the words that came out surprised even her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, looking down. "This all my fault. Mars and those guys were after me."

Maylene stared at her for a few seconds and broke into laughter. It didn't last long, mainly because the pain in her stomach and also due to her sudden coughing fit.

"You must be joking!" she said. "Inyssa, your only mistake was facing that bastard alone. You chose to fight, didn't give in to their demands and boldly looked at death square in the face. You did the right thing."

She swallowed hard, the Gym Leader's words turning her cheeks red.

"But I gave up," she argued. "and I endangered a ton of people just for being here."

Maylene dismissed her with a wave of the hand, "You don't need to worry about the people of this town, we're a tough bunch. And besides, no one actually died," she seemed chipper as she delivered the news. "As for your first point; you might've done some stupid things, but no one can blame you for that. People react weirdly to the risk of death."

Inyssa bit her lower lip, "I didn't do anything, I just stood there while Mars beat me."

She was met with another short laugh.

"You think too much, that's your problem," Maylene decided, pushing her nape against the soft pillow. "You can't over think a fight after it's over. Trust me, it's a waste of time."

Hers was a simplistic way to think about it, but she couldn't help but find it endearing nonetheless. Despite being an amazing fighter and trainer, not to mention the one who'd saved her life, one could tell she was still a teen in some ways.

"In any case, you should talk to your Pokemon before they come back," Maylene gestured towards the belt at the other side of the room. "I told you to apologize to them, didn't I?"

_Oh, fuck me._

She nervously glanced over at the coat rack, and after gathering her courage tried to get off the bed. The pain was intense, every step she took feeling like someone were hammering a nail through her bellybutton. She noticed not only her belt but also her Pokétch hanging from one of its holsters. Hao's sleepy face met her as the screen turned on. The ghost Pokemon winked and smiled, but didn't speak since Maylene was still in the room

He gestured towards the big, red  _1_  over the icon of her message app. Above it was written the name of its sender:  _Percy_.

Perplexed she pressed the button, which opened a white screen with the message she'd been sent:

 

_We saw what happened in the news._

_Tell me when you'll be coming to Pastoria; Reiko wants to talk to you about the woman who attacked you._

_PS from Reiko: We're so glad you two are okay! Pizzas are on us next time we eat together._

 

She shook her head, bewildered. What could Reiko possibly have to tell her about Mars? As far as she knew neither her nor Percy knew about Team Galactic.

It was something to think about later. She filed that particular quandary to the back of her mind and focused on the task ahead.

Her Pokeballs had a pleasant, yet sad weight on her hands. She stared for a bit before releasing her partners in a four way explosion of light that momentarily blinded her.

She couldn't even get a word in before Steven lunged at her. His talons strongly grabbed at her elbow, wings enveloping her just below the chin. The Staravia let out strong chirps of relief and happiness at the sight of his trainer, and she even noticed his eyes water slightly. She cleaned her cheek with her free sleeve and spoke as soon as she collected herself.

"Hey there, missed me?" she smiled, her voice somewhat low and nasal.

Steven noticed he was smothering and let go of her, flapping his wings down to the ground. There she could see the rest of her team; Bret and Kuro looked at her incredulous while Shadi…

She gulped, lower lip trembling. There was no denying the clear joy in the Kricketune's face, but it was mixed with something far more heavy and sinister. Anger and betrayal looked at her from behind those soft green eyes. Her mustache twitched ever so slightly, the hair at the end of it somewhat disheveled. Thick bandages covered the wound on her chest.

"I'm sorry…" she spoke without thinking, out of fear alone. She couldn't bear the thought of her own Pokemon being mad at her, not after…

"I… realize that I might have not, like… made the right decision?" she formed an awkward, lopsided smile. "You wanted to fight Mars and… to protect me, I guess. But you can't blame me for wanting to protect you too!"

Judging by the angry gleam in their eyes it looked like they sure could. The weight of their gazes started tugging down at her shoulders, and she wasn't in the best condition to endure them.

"She would've killed you," she added, tone unsure. "You didn't deserve to get hurt because of me being stupid. This wasn't your fight and…" her voice trailed off, "and…"

Hindsight hit her in the face like a hammer, or perhaps that was just her pained jaw.

The attack in the Windworks, the first time she fought Janus and Dione, the incident in Eterna City, and… that night she'd found Shadi collapsed against the door of the Pokemon Center. She hadn't exactly been giving a good example of what she was preaching, had she?

Well, if adding  _hypocrite_  to the pile of apt defects she had would keep her friends safe, then she had no problem with it. She'd been called worse, and not without reason.

"I hope you can understand why I did what I did," she said, dropping her shoulders. "That's… all I'm asking. I'm sorry."

It was an empty apology, and she was sure everyone in the room knew it. She wouldn't promise to do things differently next time (the golden rule when apologizing to a friend, as far as she was concerned), because she knew it was a bold faced lie and her Pokemon deserved better than that.

Maybe it was just her anxiety, but she could physically feel the disappointment coming from Shadi, and in lesser magnitude from Maylene. She bit her lip and looked down, feeling more like a pile of shit with every second that passed.

 _You'll thank me some day_ , she thought to herself as she raised her hands.

She pointed the Pokeballs at them, "So… please try to rest for now. We'll talk more later."

Her eyes weren't on them as their bodies turned to light. Sighing, she clipped them back on her belt and put it around her waist. It felt a lot heavier than before.

"You can go ahead and scold me," she said, adjusting the belt. "I know you're dying to."

Maylene looked at her with what she imagined a sigh looked like as a facial expression.

"I'm not your nanny. You ain't gotta to follow my advice if you don't want to," she said. "You're making things worse for yourself by assuming everyone's mad at you all the time, and then acting like it's their fault."

"You mean I shouldn't assume everyone's as much a bitter prick as I am?" she formed a smile that didn't extend to her eyes. "Now where's the fun in that?"

Whether due to frustration of simply not caring, the Gym Leader leaned back into her bed and ignored her. Fortunately the footsteps approaching from the nearby corridor didn't give her time to feel bad about it.

Sarah entered through the door, and Inyssa suddenly understood what the doctor had meant by guardian. Through a startled daze she noticed the lines on the woman's face had exacerbated, along with the dark grey bags under her eyes.

The doctor walked behind her, holding something in his hands. Heavy, sinister looking rubber belts with shining steel shackles. She gasped, and the sudden rush of adrenaline made her feel even dizzier.

"I was being sarcastic about the restraints!" she yelled, putting both hands in front of her.

The doctor raised one eyebrow, amused, "I wasn't taught sarcasm in medical school. I was however taught how to use these things; very comprehensibly too."

"Dear Synn above…" she whispered, shaking her head. "Did I punch you before you put me to sleep or something?"

"You kicked me in the groin," he winced. "Accidentally, of course."

She lowered her head, heat rising to her face, "O-oh… I'm sorry."

"No need to," he shrugged. "I was joking before, I brought these just in case," he placed the restraints on top of a nearby table. "I also brought your guardian."

As if on cue Sarah stood up straight and nodded. A half drawn smile could be seen on her face, product of the argument between the doctor and Inyssa. A smile so weak and fickle a gust of wind would've extinguished it, but it made her happy nonetheless. If anyone in the entire goddamned world deserved to smile it was Sarah.

"How are you feeling, Inyssa?" she asked, voice thin like a willow's branch. "Do you need anything?"

Her words hit hard. She didn't know why, or how, but something about the unbridled relief clear in her tone tugged at the inside of Inyssa's chest. She gulped and pretended to scratch her nose as she looked away.

"I'm great," she said nonchalantly. "How about you and Barry?"

Her expression darkened for a moment, "He's fine, mostly unharmed. Palmer is with him right now"

She took notice of the fact she didn't say anything about herself, nor did she mention how Barry was emotionally. Doubt started forming a knot in her throat until she willed it away.

"Can I talk to him?"

A sudden pause. Sarah shifted uncomfortably in place, unconsciously hugging herself in what she must've thought was her crossing her arms.

"Yes, you can," she said. "But I wanted to talk to you about something, first."

It took the doctor a couple seconds to get the hint.

"Oh, yeah," he straightened his tie, fake coughing. "I'll go have a smoke outside in the meantime. Call me if you need someone restrained," he smiled.

Sarah shook his hand absentmindedly, "Thank you, Lumos."

He walked out with a lazy sort of tiredness, leaving her alone with Sarah and Maylene.

"Well, I can't move," said the second, closing the curtain separating them once more. "But pretend I'm not here."

Sarah urged her to sit on the bed, which while incredibly painful it did ease some of the dizziness she was feeling. The woman sat at her side, fingers interlaced with each other, resting on her thighs.

"I'm… torn, Inyssa," she confessed, and for a second her firm posture seemed to shake. "On one hand I want to tell you how proud I am of you. But on the other…"

"I almost died," she interrupted. "Which you're generally not cool with."

Sarah laughed, a wonderful sound that died barely a few moments later. The woman put a hand on Inyssa's shoulder, which ironically made it feel less heavy.

"I haven't told your mother about this. I fear she might… relapse into her old habits, if she knew," she pronounced the word carefully. "But I can't keep these things hidden for long. The attack on Veilstone is all over the news, and if people weren't aware of Team Galactic before then they certainly are now."

Inyssa raised her legs to the bed and hugged her knees, shame as clear on her expression as if it'd been written with a marker.

"Rumors have already started circulating, and some of them…" Sarah bit her lip, "some of them are about you. People know it was you who tried to stop Team Galactic back in Floaroma. There's footage of all of us waking up together after the Eterna incident. Not to speak of your televised fight against Fantina…" she started fidgeting with the fabric of her own sleeves, nervously. "What I'm trying to say is that… people might get the wrong idea."

"In… what way?" she asked. "What are they saying about me?"

"That doesn't matter," Sarah stated. "The problem is, some trainers might want to follow your example. I can't have hundreds of reckless teenagers running around the region trying to do vigilante justice," she shook her head, tone full of irritation. "Don't get me wrong, what you two did was brave. But instead of fighting you should've gone back to the Pokemon Center and tried to contact us. At the very least form a group of trainers big enough to make fighting Team Galactic safer."

In any other situation, Inyssa would've complained and argued about how Sarah was being unfair and that all she wanted to do was help, but she couldn't. The exhaustion written on the woman's face coupled with the intense shame she was feeling prevented from talking back.

"You can take a break from all of this," Sarah softened her expression, her fingers tightening over her shoulder. "We captured Mars, and the rest of Galactic is soon to follow. This isn't your burden to bear."

She opened her mouth to speak, but she was cut off with a stern look.

"No, you can't go see her," she stated. "It won't do you any good."

"Just once, please?" she asked, imitating Barry's Poochyena eyes. "One visit to punch her in the face. It'll be quick."

"Absolutely not. You need to let go," she said. "Living well is the best kind of revenge."

She laughed, "Yeah, well, that sucks for me then."

Sarah's refusal remained absolute, and Inyssa had to accept she wouldn't be able to change her mind. So much for figuring out how Mars knew her sister.

_It was worth a shot, I guess._

"That's okay," she lied. "I'll let you handle her."

After a few seconds of silence Sarah stood up, slowly. She looked nervous about something as her hand dug into her pocket.

"I would love to take your word, Inyssa. But if I know you about as half as well as I think I do…" she took it out and showed her closed palm to her. "I'm sorry, but I need to guarantee you two will be safe from now on."

She uncurled her fingers, revealing a round, small device. It looked like the lens of a very tiny camera, with a blinking red light in the middle of it.

"These are tracking devices. You'll both attach it to your clothes so I can check where you are at all times," she said. "The bump in the middle is an emergency button that will send a beacon to both me and Palmer. I suggest you put them somewhere hidden but accessible."

Inyssa stared at disbelief at the small artifacts, unsure if Sarah was kidding or not.

"I am not going to…"

Sarah frowned, and all incentive to talk back evaporated. A strong shiver ran through her spine.

"You and Barry will have these on at all times, or I will rebuke your trainer license this instant," she ordered, eyes like that of a Braviary. "This isn't negotiable. I should have you stuck here like the rest of the town will be, but I'm giving you the opportunity to continue with your journey. I can easily take that privilege away."

Inyssa gulped. Sarah was barely taller than her and she looked ready to die from exhaustion, but even then she gave off the vibe of a ruthless Ursaring. The seriousness of her statement was almost palpable.

Without another word of complaint she nodded, and Sarah attached one of the devices to the back of her coat's collar.

"So… the town will be locked?" she asked, still somewhat shaken. "Just like Eterna?"

Sarah nodded, "It won't be for long, but we need to make a full sweep of the area. The Champion will also pass by to investigate."

A wave of excitement washed over her, until she remembered she wouldn't be in Veilstone to meet her. Part of her wanted to be locked in, but she couldn't justify halting their journey just for that.

_Still, have things really gotten so serious as for the Champion to appear?_

"Then…" she had a sudden realization and turned to Maylene. "I'm not gonna have my Gym Battle?"

For the first time the girl acknowledged them, showing her face through the crack in the curtains.

"I'll be out of commission for a few weeks," she smiled meekly. "But you can come back after you beat Sunnyshore's Gym. That way we can have an all out battle with our best Pokemon."

She really liked the sound of that. While it was disappointing that she would walk away from Veilstone without a badge, it wasn't like their journey had been completely fruitless.

"I'll keep training like you taught me to," she smiled, raising her fist. "Thank you."

Her statement had been entirely sincere, even if small drops of sarcasm had been mixed here and there. Sarah knew this, as did Maylene who simply let herself fall into the bed once again.

Now she only had one thing to take care of.

"Can I go see Barry now?" she turned to Sarah, pleading.

She replied only after a few moments, "Yes... but I need to tell you something first," she pointed at the door. "Come with me."

They walked towards the corridor at the other side, and Inyssa wished she'd brought her shoes. The floor was incredibly cold and slippery.

Sarah stopped after only seconds of walking, and sighed. She turned to Inyssa with an ominous frown, and put a hand on her shoulder.

"You have to promise me you won't blame yourself for this."

Those words alone were enough to set the webs of her mind on fire.

"Wh-" she stammered, eyes wide open. "You told me he was…!"

"Barry is okay," she cut her down. "It's… it's not that."

She put a hand over her face and rubbed her eyelids, "It's… well, something happened to one of his Pokemon."

 

* * *

 

 

Barry had always tried to look on the bright side, even when in the bottom of the metaphorical pitch black well he'd gotten to visit once or twice.

Right now the only bright side he could find was behind his eyes. That stupid warmth hadn't disappeared ever since his encounter with Mars. It was heavy and bothersome, and it was the last thing he needed at that moment. Like a thick blanket on a hot summer night

The back of his fingers caressed Paulette's cheek, so softly one might think he was afraid to break her. She was bedridden like he'd been a few hours ago, the only difference being that she wouldn't leave the hospital with him.

His father's words bounced off him as he stared wordlessly. The hand resting on his shoulder felt made of iron, and he wished he'd just take it off but was too afraid to ask.

The corners of his mouth twitched as he examined the bandages covering her for the fourth time. The feathers around it were bent and ruffled, much unlike the pristine state she loved to keep them in at all times. In the part where her left wing connected with her body a deep, red stain tore through the pure white of the cloth. He couldn't stop staring at it.

Maybe if he blinked enough times it would go away. The blood and the bandages and the invisible broken glass skimming his throat from the inside.

" _I'm afraid the cut was deep enough to sever nerves and muscle,"_  the dark eyed doctor told them, almost managing to pretend he was as heartbroken by the news as Barry was.  _"It's not possible to restore them completely, though with rehabilitation and a few months of medical care she might be able to fly again."_

The look he gave Barry then had been as clear as crystal. She might be able to fly again, with luck. Battling was completely out of the question.

He looked at the rest of his Pokemon, sitting around the bed protectively, like they'd done for him. They were wounded as well, but not nearly as much. A few cuts and bruises here and there, nothing that couldn't be taken care of. Physically they were as well as he was.

But he could tell they shared the same thoughts just by looking. Razen and Kitsune stared at their partner with sadness and pity, their eyes dark and sunken. Pedri was a few feet away, sitting (or perhaps collapsed might've been a better word) against the opposite wall. His sight had been set on the pearly white floor for almost two hours now. His face was a mask of rage and guilt.

"…it happens in every trainer's life at some point…" his dad's voice broke through the invisible wall surrounding him. He sounded desperate. "Listen… Barry. I'm… you know I'm not great with words, that's' why we have your mom." he formed an awkward smile. "But I've been a trainer for twenty years, and you have to believe me when I say this: it wasn't your fault."

He tried returning the smile, though it barely showed itself. The muscles on his face weren't feeling very cooperative.

"You don't have enough faith on us."

Palmer's thick eyebrows joined above the bridge of his nose. Had he… had he imagined that golden glow in his eyes?

The boy forced himself to smile for real this time, and addressed his Pokemon. He brushed Paulette's forehead gently to get her attention, and spoke with voice as soft as silk.

"This would be the part where I tell you how sorry I am, and how proud you made me," he said, the warmth behind his eyes growing towards his entire body. "But I'm not like that doctor, or mom or dad or anyone else here. They don't believe in you, but I do."

Palmer raised his hand tentatively towards his son, "B-Barry…"

"They're all wrong," he stated, tone turning harsher, almost into a scream. The air seemed to shake for a moment. "Don't listen to them, Paulette. You're gonna recover and be even stronger than you were before," he closed his left fist strongly, smile wavering. "You'll always be a part of my team, I promise."

"Barry." Palmer repeated, worry lines forming on his forehead.

"Let them whisper whatever they want," he said bitterly, ignoring him. "You're my Pokemon, and no one in heaven or earth can put you down."

What startled everyone the most was not the boy's heated tone, nor the clear gold of his eyes. It was his voice. It filled the room entirely, from the walls to the floor to the ceiling and all in between, they could even feel it in their bones. There was no speck of doubt in it, either. It was clear Barry completely believed what he was saying.

"You just need to rest for a while, and you'll be good as new before you know it," he assured Paulette. "I'll go ahead and keep challenging the Gym Leaders, but I'll be waiting for you at the top. I know you'll reach me there."

Some might say he was being selfish, and they'd be more than half right. Some might think he was in denial or putting too much pressure on his own Pokemon, but those people were not in that room with him. For a moment his voice was able to convince even Palmer. His words wormed their way through them like a song, like the heaviest of truths.

And in that moment, as Paulette heard them, it might've just saved her. She parted her beak and let out a low but resounding chirp of approval. Her eyes were as full of fire as Barry's were.

Palmer might've said something, but just then the door opened. Slowly, it's creaking a low hum of doubt and fear. Inyssa stepped through it, her fingertips pale over the doorknob. She was leaning down slightly, and her posture was brittle. Her eyes reflected guilt like a polished mirror.

"B-Barry?"

He turned around casually, and when their eyes met his had returned to their usual brown. His expression was unreadable.

Inyssa stood there, frozen by something she noticed in him. She looked like a Glameow that had been grabbed by the tail and dumped into a bucket of water. Three times she opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. The silence in the room was thicker than the walls themselves.

He started walking towards her, and he could see the panic growing larger in her face with every step he took. He stopped a few inches away from her, and scowled.

"I'm…" she parted her lips to speak. "I'm s…"

Barry slapped her on the side of the head, just above her ear. It was so fast she only noticed the pain a few seconds after, eyes wide in shock.

"A-Agh!" she took a step back and pressed her palms against her head. "The hell was that for!?"

He stomped the floor as strongly as he could, hands curled into fists.

"You are such an idiot!"

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa was too stunned to speak. Barry might as well have told her he was going to become an artistic skater and it would've had the same effect. He didn't look furious like she'd expected, just… annoyed.

"Just what the hell were you thinking!?" he threw his arms to the sky, nose flared up.

She looked at Palmer, who looked back at her while mirroring her confusion. The man fixed his collar and coughed silently, looking towards the door.

"Y-yeah, I'm gonna leave you kids alone so you can…" he struggled to find the words. "Uh… yeah. Later."

Barry didn't even look at his father as he exited the room. All his attention was focused on Inyssa, who still hadn't given a reply to his question. She silently pleaded Pedri for an explanation, and all she got was a half assed shrug back.

"What… do you mean?" she asked tentatively. "Is this because of Paulette?"

He recoiled, narrowing his eyes for a moment, "What? No! I'm talking about Mars!" he shook his head in disbelief. "Maylene told me what happened! Why did you give up against her!?"

Heat rose to her face, tinting her cheeks red.

"I… I was just protecting my Pokemon," she said. "Mars was gonna…"

He stomped the ground again, startling her, "That's not what I'm talking about! You told her she could kill you!"

Something like electricity sprung from the back of her neck, putting her hair on edge. Her eyes went wide and her face pale.

"That's not… that's not what I said," she yelped.

"It might as well have been!" he yelled, loud enough to make her take a step back. "You gave up!"

Those three words pierced her body like knives. She winced and lowered her head slightly, teeth clenched. A wetness formed in her eyes.

_No, don't you fucking dare._

"She… she wanted me to plead for my life."

Barry stammered for a few seconds, as if he'd hear the stupidest thing in the world. "Well!? Why the hell didn't you!?"

The sensation that hit her at that moment was the same as just before she realized Mars was impersonating Barry.

"I…" she stood straight and leaned her head to the side, face scrunched up in confusion. "Wh- are you… serious?"

"No, I'm just being sarcastic," he imitated her tone. "I learned it from my idiot of a best friend."

The ants under her skin scurried faster, heating up the inside of it. Something sharp and dazed started growing from her stomach.

_Okay first of all, fuck you._

She furrowed her brow and gave him a look that could've shattered glass, "What the hell is your problem? You fucking know me, I would never give her the satisfaction of…"

Something tugged at the back of her neck. Barry's fingers closed around the part of her coat just under the scarf and pulled up. His strength was almost enough to momentarily lift her off her feet.

She looked up to his face. His expression seemed held by duct tape, like at any moment his façade of anger would shatter into a million pieces.

"If you have a chance, any chance to get out alive… you take it," he spat out those last words, hand shaking around her coat. "You don't get to die on me because of your stupid pride. And you don't get to sacrifice yourself to protect others like an idiot."

She opened her mouth and spat a gust of air, almost laughing, "Y-you tried to do the exact same thing for me!"

"Yeah, because I'm an idiot!" he said. "But you're supposed to be the smart one! You're not supposed to act like me!"

His logic rendered her mute for a few seconds, unable to think of what to say back.

"You're not… it's not okay. What do you think I'd do without you?"

All strength left his voice with those last words, and his grip loosened. It was like he'd deflated, his shoulders fell and he lowered his head slightly. For a single moment they looked to be the same height.

He raised his arm, fingers clumsily closing around her hand, "I was so worried, Niss…" he whispered. "Why do you have to play the hero every time? Maybe I wanna do that once in a while, you know?"

He spat out a weak laugh. Not a premeditated one, but the kind that bubbles from the bottom of the stomach and can't be easily contained. It hit Inyssa like a gust of hot air, as if he'd just released invisible embers from his mouth. It was weirdly contagious, and she couldn't help but laugh as well. It left her lips and died in the time it took her to blink

She didn't know why she did it. She figured she'd finally snapped from the chaos whirling inside her mind.

_No, that's not it._

That storm had been weakened, tamed almost. With every word Barry spoke, with every inch less between them it began to dissipate until the only thing that existed were them and the space between their hands.

_You know why._

The truth living in the deepest part of her knocked at her door, and quite loudly at that. Each knock resounded inside her chest, growing outwards like a wave, like a fire. It cut her breath short, filling her throat with dry air. It hurt so badly.

_Tell him. He deserves to know._

She couldn't, she was too scared to. What if he didn't feel the same way? What if he, god forbid, pulled his hand away and let the storm in her mind come to life again? His fingers around hers felt too good to let go. As long as she didn't, nothing bad would happen.

_You're selfish. You're only thinking of yourself._

So what? Telling him would've been even more selfish. What was she supposed to say, anyway? That she couldn't imagine a life without him, too? That he was her lighthouse during a dark night? That she was a corny piece of shit who wanted more of him than he could offer as a friend?

She didn't have anything to give in return. Besides, he was the only friend she'd ever had. How would she know if what she was feeling really was…?

It wasn't worth the risk, she convinced herself. She pushed that irritated voice to a part of her mind where it wouldn't bother her, and opened her mouth to speak.

"Maybe next time we can both be idiots together," she said, her forehead almost touching his. "Strength in numbers and all that."

Barry pressed his free hand against his mouth, trying to contain a chuckle. Wrinkles of a smile formed on the edges of his eyes.

"We really need to stop splitting up," he said. "It's never once worked out for us."

"Maybe we can ask your mom for handcuffs," she offered, "that way we can be together next time we get into trouble."

He knit his eyebrows playfully, "No way, you move a lot in your sleep. A rope would be better."

The laugh they shared was familiar, like an old friend they hadn't met in a long time. It tried its best to untie the know of regret resting in Inyssa's stomach, though it only got half way before giving up.

Still, it was better than nothing, and she accepted it like a gifted penny.

It's the most she deserved, she assured herself.

It was better that way.

 

* * *

 

 

Sarah took a cigarette out of its package the moment she stepped outside.

She hated smoking. It had brought her nothing but trouble during her younger days, and she would've betted it was the reason behind her occasional coughing fits. She'd done her damnest to stay away from them for as long as possible.

The taste of smoke filled her mouth, bringing her the closest thing to bliss she'd felt in days. She needed it, just this time. Sleep would be a good replacement later, but now she had a job to do.

The main street in front of her was busy, probably more than it'd ever been. Swarms of sunken eyed people moved from here to there, distrust clear in their eyes. A few gave her the stink eye when they passed close. They didn't trust her. She was part of the Association, after all.

A thread of smoke escaped her lips. She didn't mind. All she cared about was making a world safe enough for her son to live in. Everything else was meaningless.

The creak of the glass doors of the hospital made its way to her, followed by familiar footsteps. She didn't bother hiding the cigarette, even when her husband's judging eyes and his bird nest of blonde hair appeared at her side.

"It'll only be this one," she said, voice rough and cracked. "I can give you the rest of the package if you want."

Palmer smiled, droopy eyes, and that gave her a similar feeling to that of the nicotine entering her body.

"No need to. I trust you."

She nodded, "How's Barry doing?"

His smile dropped, raising her panic level. Bad news?

"Somewhat in denial," Palmer said. "At least… I think. He wants to believe his Pokemon will get better and… for a moment, I actually believed it too. That kid…" his shoulders dropped. "I don't know how to explain it. Something about him makes you want to believe things will turn out alright."

Sarah stood silent, a heavy feeling of dread setting on her stomach. She'd seen the medical report of her son's Staravia; and she didn't need to be a doctor to know there was no chance for a full recovery. Still…

"If anyone can make that true just by saying it, it's Barry," she said, looking up at her husband. "He got that from you. Your stupid optimism is contagious, it seems."

He put a hand around her waist, pulling her closer. She let herself be hugged, pressing the back of her head against his chest. Warm and comfortable, just like she remembered it.

"Things are getting out of control again," she said after a few seconds. "I don't know if I did the right thing by letting them continue their travels. Maybe they would be safer here."

"That wouldn't have worked, by a number of reasons," Palmer laughed. "Trust my word as a trainer; there is no way in heaven anyone would be able to keep those two in one place when they have so much to explore. There's nothing we could do to stop them, but at least we can know where they are if they get in trouble."

Sarah sighed, "I'm… I honestly can't believe this," she shook her head, closing her eyes momentarily. "For something like this to happen, and so soon after the war, it almost feels deliberate."

"We'll make it through," Palmer assured her. "Just like last time."

"Just like last time…" she repeated, spitting smoke with each word. "But last time we promised ourselves it'd be the last time. That's why we did all the horrible things we did; so Barry could live in a better world than the one we were born into." Her voice wavered for a moment, her eyes stinging. "Was it all for nothing? I don't want him to become what we did. He deserves better than that."

Her husband's hand closed tightly on her shoulder, "It will be okay, I promise. We'll deal with Team Galactic before they can do more harm, and things will go back to normal again."

She didn't tell Palmer, but his words didn't exactly make her feel better. Before she could at least conceive the idea that while Team Galactic was dangerous, Barry and Inyssa wouldn't be in any more danger than any other trainer. But after the events of today she knew better.

They, or at the very least that woman Mars, wanted Inyssa for something. She didn't believe they wanted her dead, considering all the time they had to kill her. Something to do with Shadi, perhaps? She had considered the possibility that her and the other two young trainer's fates might have something to do with Team Galactic, but it was nothing but a baseless theory. Until now.

She bit her lip, foot tapping on the floor. That woman, Mars… there was something about her that she couldn't make out, something that made her terribly familiar. It didn't help that she'd talked like she knew her, like they were old pals. Something strange was happening, and she had less than half the pieces of the puzzle. She hated not knowing something.

A high pitched ring brought her back to her senses. Palmer and her looked down to her Pokétch; they were calling her from the Association. She raised the device closer to her mouth and pressed the button to answer.

"Miss Paladino?"

It was the voice of Sadie, one of her subordinates.

"Yes, I'm here," she spoke into the device. "What is it? Do you have an update?"

A few moments passed where all she could hear at the other side was the sound of papers shuffling and muffled whispering.

"Y-yes, I have a report here! It says all the captured Galactic members were successfully transferred to the Stark Mountain prison. Interrogations have already begun."

Palmer let out a thin gasp next to her, and she knit her eyebrows. Stark Mountain… that was very close to where the Frontier facility was located. Why did they choose such a remote location, in an island far away from Sinnoh's shores?

"Understood," she said, trying to sound professional. "What are the results of the interrogation?"

Another pause, though this time there was complete silence at the other side. Sadie spoke after five seconds, tone nervous.

"It says… it says here that there have been no results."

She frowned, leaning her head to the side, "What do you mean? We captured over thirty of them, you're telling me none are talking?"

"It says here that they tried many interrogation techniques on the captured grunts but…" it seemed like she was struggling to say the words. "You might not believe what it says here, but apparently none of them remember anything."

She exchanged a look with Palmer, whose face had gone pale. What the hell was she talking about? Was this some sort of joke?

"Explain," she ordered. "What do you mean they don't remember anything?"

"That's… that's all. It's says here that it's like they have no memory of ever being part of Team Galactic. They even tried using psychic Pokemon to influence their minds and force them to confess, but there were no results."

Her throat went dry as she listened. That was impossible, there was absolutely no way more than thirty people could lose their memories at once. However, she knew that the Association's methods of interrogation were about as thorough and failsafe as possible, so they couldn't be lying, either.

_What the hell is going on?_

"W-well, that's most of them," Sadie spoke again. "There are three that still remember. The redheaded woman, the one that can transform herself, and the two people she was found with when she was arrested."

Sarah almost choked on her enthusiasm, "Well!? How did that interrogation turn out?"

"They… haven't been able to ask them anything," Sadie said, nervously. "It doesn't matter how much they try to immobilize her; she transforms whatever part of her body isn't bound and attacks anyone who gets close to her and the two grunts in her cell. They can't sedate her either, so they're all stuck in a cell for now."

She felt her spirits drop to the floor. There had to be something, at least one miniscule thing that could go right for her today. Anything.

"She hasn't said anything?" desperation was clear in Sarah's voice.

"I'll ask them as soon as I can, Miss Paladino," Sadie said, tone low. "I'm sorry."

She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, "It's… it's okay. Good job, call me again if there's an update."

Were it not for the fact her husband was next to her she might've considered punching a nearby wall. She could feel her exhaustion dragging down at her shoulders, the edges of her vision turning blurry. 

"I'll go with you to Stark Mountain, don't worry," Palmer put a hand on her shoulder. "It's close to where I work, anyway."

Part of her wanted to protest, but the entirety of her body silently complained until she had no choice to accept.

"Thank you," she whispered, getting on her tiptoes to give him a kiss.

"It's the least I can do," the man shrugged, smiling. "I'll be heading out now, while you tell Barry goodbye. You know how to handle the kids better than I do. I'm not really cut out for this parenting thing."

She assured him he was doing as good of a job as anyone could, and saw as he summoned his Salamance and flew into the distance. She stood silent for a few seconds, eyes set on the sky and cinder falling from the tip of her cigarette to the ground.

She shook her head weakly, throwing the thing to the trash and rubbing her eyelids. She would have to try and sleep, at least a little, even if she couldn't get her mind off the matter at hand. Those cold, red eyes stared back at her whenever she closed hers. So unnerving, so familiar.

It was excruciating, having something on the tip of your tongue and not being able to bring it out. Last time she'd seen something similar was a couple years ago with…

Every nerve on her body felt struck with lightning. Her lower lip trembled as her eyes went wide as plates.

_No, there's absolutely no way._

Her finger tapped the screen of the Pokétch so strongly the film underneath flashed for a moment. As fast as she could she began searching through the myriad of image folders she'd gathered over the years, focusing especially on the albums related to Twinleaf and her family.

_You finally went crazy. It's not going to be…_

An image had appeared in her head, the face of a young girl she'd known. As she finally found the photo she was looking for, buried in time, she opened it and prayed to god that she was wrong. She had to be wrong.

The image filled the entire screen. Three young teens, two girls and one boy, were taking a picture together, smiling brightly. She saw Ciro on the right, the one whose body they had found two years ago at Victory Road. She saw Shadi, as sleepy looking as ever, showing a peace sign to the camera and smiling lazily. And putting her hand on her shoulder…

Every muscle in her body went numb. There she was. Siffa.

The consistency and color of her hair were different, as were her clothes. But the shape and dark red of her eyes; the way her lips formed that cheeky smile, the thinness of her face… there was absolutely no doubt.

That was Mars, staring at her from the other side of the screen.


	32. A Fiery New Friend

**Route 213 - 11PM**

Metchi bit down on the cottony bread of her sandwich, and every cell in her body cheered in joy.

Shamefully, she had to accept the truth: stolen food tasted just as delicious as regular food, if not more. Part of her expected the shame of her actions to somehow haunt the sandwich like a ghost with a lot of free time. It would've meant she really felt bad about what she'd done, but at the same time she hadn't enjoyed a good lunch in weeks.

_Prosciutto and parmesan? Gotta give it to these pompous assholes; they know how please a girl's palate._

So what if her refuge was some run down building, ready to fall on itself? So what if she could hear the jubilee and screams of those rich douchebags in the distance, enjoying their stay in Sinnoh's most prestigious hotel? The only thing they had over her was a comfier bed, which she could do without.

Her gaze moved to the frame of the shattered window at her right. Moonlight filtered into the room, along with a hearty gust of wind. The beach sat just under her, nothing but glistening white and gold until it met with the water. The moon cast a pillar of white light which tore the ocean in half.

She allowed herself a smile. So what if she was spending her night there? In the end her view was much better, and she hadn't paid a single penny.

She finished three thirds of the  _Footlong Deluxe_  (as the paper package of the sandwich had called it), and wrapped the rest. For the first time in days the beast in her stomach stopped growling, instead switching to a low, almost imperceptible rumbling.

_"You should eat all of it, Metchi."_

And there it was, in time just like the fucking trains during the war. The sun rose in the morning, the plants grew and Azelf used every opportunity it got to nag at her.

"I'm already full," she said, her voice echoing in the empty room.

_"I can feel everything you feel, and you're lying. Eat the rest."_

"Get off my ass."

_"You're saving it for him, aren't you?"_

She shifted uncomfortably against the concrete wall behind her. How the hell was one supposed to awkwardly ignore the question of someone who lived inside your head? Or… soul, or whatever.

With a turn of her head she looked out the window once more, and her eyes caught the slightest glimpse of something orange scurrying out of view. Still following her. Still pretending he wasn't.

A deep sigh resounded inside her head, coming from Azelf.

_"Not only have you uselessly wasted most of my power reserves to save that Monferno, but now you're saving food for him. Even after he's tried stealing from us twice."_

Indeed, her brave plan hadn't worked as she expected. As soon as the fire Pokemon had been able to stand he ran away, taking with him a few of the pieces of bread she'd been able to gather.

"It's not stealing if I want him to have it," she argued. "This would be a lot easier if he accepted my help."

_"He's too prideful for that. You're wasting your time by offering him help. As opposed to the other myriad of ways in which you're used to wasting time."_

She rolled her eyes, "Great. I have an asshole of a roommate and a stalker with anger management issues. Am I back in high school or what?" She laughed at her own joke, since no one else did. "Seriously, though. What crawled up your ass and died?

_"I assume your question is meant to ask why I'm acting this way toward you. If so, I think it's clear that I find your actions to be extremely illogical and emotion driven."_

She chortled, "I mean, yes? I am a human, as you so often like to remind me. According to you we're all a bunch of thoughtless idiots who only got this far because we're the exception, not the rule," she recited his previous words from memory, one finger raised.

_"Your kind hasn't given me ample reason to think otherwise."_

Metchi rolled her eyes, "Jeez Azelf, way to be the heart of the party," she said, shaking her head. "You know what you need?"

_"No, and I'd rather not get that answer from you."_

"You need to get laid."

There were a few moments of silence, followed by the most confused she'd ever heard Azelf's voice.

_"Ex…cuse me?"_

"Yeah!" She clapped her hands together. "Trust me, I know your type. You're clearly waiting for another dashing legendary Pokemon to come and sweep you off your feet, teaching you the real meaning of love and how not to be a fucking asshole."

She wasn't sure if the silence that followed was due to Azelf being too surprised by her words or too offended by them.

"Let's see, what would be a good match for you?" Metchi stroked her chin contemplatively. "I think a bright eyed optimist would be best, since your opposite personalities might attract and you could learn from each other! Ah, so romantic…"

_"Metchi, this is the most painful conversation I've ever been a part of. Please stop."_

"Fine, fine," she sighed, leaning once more against the cold of the wall. "What a wet blanket."

_"I don't have time for your foolishness, girl. Furthermore, that was not even close to what we were discussing before."_

"Yeah I know, you just can't waste an opportunity to badmouth my species." She stared daggers at the empty room. "Look, my point is, you keep acting surprised every time I do something stupid or illogical. It's like you haven't met a human in… I don't know, hundreds of years."

There was a long silence, followed only by the rustling grass outside. 

_"That's because I haven't."_

It was a good thing she wasn't still eating the sandwich, or she would've choked on it.

"What?" she asked, incredulous. "You can't be serious."

_"I always am."_

"But..." she furrowed her brow. "That doesn't make sense. There are tons of stories and legends about the Lake Guardians helping people all throughout history, even outside of Sinnoh. Laniel, the Slave Knight, Orsif the Ever Young…" she listed the names of the heroes off the top of her head, without trouble.

_"If you paid more attention to those stories you would realize I'm in none of them. My siblings are the ones who enjoy your kind's company."_

She ran the list through her head again, trying to remember the details. There had to be at least one myth about a human bonding with Azelf, right?

_"Mesprit is enamored with humans. Addicted to the praise they give it and sees you as entertaining at best, and toys at worst. Uxie thinks it can do well for your species, and constantly tries to influence a worthy champion to change the world for the best. Idealistic idiots, the both of them."_

Feeling raw emotion through Azelf's words was almost impossible, since it had no actual voice. But at that moment it hit her entirely. Anger, sorrow and something deeper that she couldn't quite make out.

"So… you've never bonded with a human before?" she asked, gulping.

Five heartbeats went by before Azelf spoke again.

_"Only twice."_

Part of her wanted to ask, but she knew it would've been a bad idea. It was clear Azelf didn't want to talk about it, and pressing the matter would only make things worse.

"Then… why are you still one of the guardians?" she asked. "You're supposed to be the protectors of humanity's spirit, but you seem to hate us."

_"How about you? You're trying to save everyone, even though you don't have friends or a home. Do you enjoy this job? Does it bring you pleasure and levity?"_

"No, but it's what I have to do," she argued. "And besides, I don't hate the people I want to save."

_"That's irrelevant. You have a duty to perform, and ambition to carry you forward. Your feelings and your past don't factor into it."_

Metchi placed her bandage covered hand on her knee. The persistent itch of dirt and grime stung through the broken fabric of her jeans. She would've done anything for a scalding shower, save for murder. Her gaze went outside, toward prettier things than the concrete box around her.

"That sounds like a shitty way to live," she said to the moon.

Azelf didn't refute her, which said more about it than it desired. A strange pulse grew from her insides, burdensome. It tugged her shoulders down and made her drowsy. Exhaustion.

_"I'll focus on healing you further. Don't bother me again."_

She nodded absentmindedly, choosing not to remind Azelf that it'd been the one to bother her first. Pale gold evaporated from her eyes, bringing back their usual blue. The warmth left too, alerting her to just how cold it was.

Mist spiraled into a few strands of pale grey as she exhaled. It would be a harsh night to sleep through. Looking toward the window she caught that orange blur again, an sighed.

With effort she pushed herself to her feet, the remaining third of her sandwich on her right hand. She walked to the frame and stopped just an inch from it. The wind carried her voice all throughout that part of the beach.

"You can come out," she said, eyes only half open. "Seriously, you can have the sandwich. I don't care."

No reply. She scratched her cheek in thinly veiled frustration.

"I don't know if this is a pride thing or like… you want to hunt your own food, but you can't afford to keep at it like this," she tried to reason. "I'm a big girl, but I don't have that much of an appetite. I have no problem sharing with you."

The low rumble of a growl made its way from somewhere close, but out of her sight. Had she offended him?

"It doesn't have to be a charity! Look, you help me make a bonfire and I'll give you food. An agreed exchange; that's how society works."

The sound stopped, and a tentative silence set over the freezing air outside. It smelled like sea and fire and frustration.

"It's pretty cozy here. Concrete is good at absorbing heat, you know."

She waited for what seemed like an entire minute, and just when she was ready to give up the Pokemon stepped into view. The flame of his tail burned meekly, with the pale red of autumn leaves. His snout shook slightly, and his eyes were a strange mix of tired and angry.

He looked barely able to keep himself awake, and Metchi had to try hard not to show how bad she felt for him. That would only wound his pride.

She stepped to the side and gestured an invitation. Slowly, he walked towards the frame of the window and hopped in, all the while avoiding looking at her. He stood still for a few seconds, unsure. As subtly as possible she handed him the wrapped meal, which he took after moments of consideration.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" she smiled. "That's how you make friends. And it's also how we're gonna avoid freezing to death tonight."

The shadow of a smile flashed over his eyes. He nodded as energetically as he could, and turned towards a small pile of paper and leaves in the middle of the room.

His fire was weak, but it would be enough to get through the night comfortably.

 

* * *

 

 

**Route 214 - 5PM**

Leaving Veilstone turned difficult for reasons other than the gut wrenching pain in Inyssa's… well, gut.

The whole thing had been rather grim, even with Barry's mom trying to cheer them up. But not even Sarah's unwavering (and she imagined somewhat faked) optimism could dispel her son's shadowed expression.

Inyssa had tried her best, too. She even showed him the new and improved Hao, which cracked a few jokes on her behalf. He found it interesting, and even smiled a couple times, but in the end it wasn't enough.

She'd been useless again. Starting to get used to the feeling.

They'd gotten their provisions and escaped through the city gates just before they closed them, and now they walked through the middle of Route 214. At their right the massive wall which was Mt Coronet blocked all but a sliver of sunlight, while from the forests on their left filtered a misty, freezing air which turned her hands pale and her skin stiff. The road was built on slightly higher ground, leaving the tall grass and less traveled routes a few feet from them.

Barry walked next to her, hands on his pockets and sight lost someplace else. A few feet ahead was Pedri, shoulders squared and prepared never to let someone get the jump on his trainer again. At her left Kuro walked lazily, without a care in the world. He nuzzled her leg occasionally, looking for a scratch behind his ear and a treat.

"So…" she spoke up, tone still brittle. "I heard there are some cool Pokemon around. We could go down to the tall grass and see if we have some luck."

He came back to reality in the middle of her sentence, and it took him a few moments to decipher the rest through contest.

"I… don't know if I'm feeling up to it right now," he smiled, his eyes droopy. "But I can wait for you here if you wanna go. I could prepare some snacks."

_It's not fun without you, though._

Those words didn't leave her mouth, even if they were written all over her face. In any case, she couldn't stop trying just after one failure. It was her job to cheer Barry up when he was feeling down, and she'd accomplish her task even if it killed her.

She looked at him, fists clenched.

_You're gonna have fun and be happy, goddammit._

"Here, I have an idea," she said, smiling. "We can…"

A flash of light cut her words short. The ground rumbled as a column of flame and smoke exploded from the nearby forest, not too far from them. It climbed the air up toward the sky for a few seconds before dissipating with a dying roar. Kuro almost jumped out of his skin, and the small discharge of electricity he released hit Inyssa's leg, making her flinch.

The heat wave rustled the leaves and grass as it traveled towards them, making their eyes water from the intensity. As silence fell over the route once more she turned to Barry, who looked like someone had dumped a bucket of water over him.

"Do you think that was…" he whispered, eyes flashing gold for a moment.

"Enma," she said, desperation clear in her voice.

"O-oh. I meant Team Galactic."

The bridge of her nose wrinkled as she stared at him, worried. The idiot was trying to put on a façade of bravery even though he was quaking in his… were those things boots? Well, whatever footwear he had on it didn't matter; she would make sure nothing happened to him or his Pokemon.

"Have you guys considered that it might've been something else? Something you don't have to get involved in?"

Hao's voice came to life from the device on her wrist, and she almost jumped from the surprise. It would take some time until she got used to it.

"It never hurts to check," she said.

Barry nodded, "Someone could be in trouble."

"You're killing me, Ni Ni." Hao's avatar shook his head _._ "Fine, I'll have the emergency beacon ready just in case."

"What would we do without you," she smiled. "Also, stop calling me that."

Barry helped her down to the tall grass, and with caution they approached the opening to the forest, Pokeballs in hand.

The stench of burnt leaves and dirt stuck to the ground as they advanced. It was slow and methodical, mostly because otherwise every step would've felt like an arrow to the stomach to Inyssa. Pedri and Kuro walked at their side, their senses sharpened to their limits as they formed a shield for their trainers.

It was a good thing they had some sense of self control, otherwise the person they ran into might've been severely hurt.

Pedri extended one fin to stop them, frowning. He gestured in front of them and pointed at his ears. Indeed, as soon as Inyssa concentrated she heard the sound of crunching approaching from the east. Both trainers moved closer unconsciously, ready to unleash the rest of their teams at a moment's notice.

A dark silhouette appeared between the trees, and it stopped as soon as it saw them. Silence wormed its way through the darkness of the forest for a few seconds. Just when her patience was about to run out a voice came towards them.

"Oh, hello there!"

A woman's voice, probably. Rich like honey, and full of strength. It hit Inyssa like a gust of wind and the simple sound of it eased her nerves without her realizing it.

She walked a few steps, revealing herself to the sunlight leaking through the branches above.

 

* * *

 

 

Barry couldn't help but gasp.

He'd never been good at remembering people. Like most complex things, they tended to slip through the broad cracks of his memory if they didn't leave a lasting impression. Subjects regarding numbers and words? Those were a lot easier, and it was the reason math was the only class Niss had never been able to beat him on.

But she recognized the woman in front of them even before she showed her face. He didn't mention it to Niss out of fear she might think him crazy, but he had a hunch it was her. It was as faint as a sheet of ice, but the moment he heard her voice he knew it was right.

She waved at them, almost lazily. A golden sheet of hair fell from her head towards her hip, one strand covering her left eye.

"It's you!" he said, perhaps too loudly. "Cynthia, right?"

Niss turned towards him, one eyebrow raised, "You know her?"

"Y-yeah, from Hearthome," he said. "I ran into her at the church, that time Fantina invited you to her room."

The woman approached them with such ease that neither Pedri nor Kuro even considered trying to stop her. It was as if she were nothing more than a fallen leaf, dancing down towards them.

"Barry, if I'm not mistaken," she said, smiling. "What a delightful twist of fate to find you here. And you…" her stormy grey eyes fell on Niss, whose entire body shivered under their weight, "…must be Inyssa, or the Child of Thorns as people have been calling you."

His friend's eyes went wide, and he had to press a hand against his mouth to stifle a laugh. It'd been a long time since he'd seen her so offended.

"Is that really what people are calling me?" her voice was half a plea and half a growl of anger. "Because if so, I'm walking back to Hearthome right now to shove this Relic Badge up Fantina's…"

"Niss!" he yelled, cheeks turning red.

Cynthia's pale lips curled up in amusement, and Barry suddenly felt glad he was already blushing from before.

"There is no need to be angry; I think it's a lovely title," she said, raising her left palm delicately. "Besides, I believe you have earned it. Bought and paid for it, if your recent showings are any indication of it."

Now it was Niss who was blushing. She gulped, probably not knowing how to react to people complimenting her without insulting them.

"The same can be said for you, Barry," she addressed him with a smile. "I can feel the strength of your spirits by just standing here, and I am impressed. I'm sure you'll both grow to be incredible trainers."

He and Niss exchanged a look which boiled down to:

_Was she this weird when you met her?_

_Pretty much._

"T-thank you so much," he muttered, bowing to her slightly. "But… we came here because we saw that fire and thought someone was in trouble. Do you know what happened?"

Cynthia's brow furrowed, and she let out air through her nose. The childish gesture looked almost comical coming from a woman her age.

"I'm afraid that was my fault." She shook her head, placing her hands on her hips. "I was on my way north when I ran across a lovely fire Pokemon. I might have… gotten a bit too excited about that," she smiled awkwardly, "and I accidentally let her steal an item from me which intensifies the power of fire attacks."

Barry narrowed his eyes, "How do you… accidentally let someone steal from you?"

"In any case, the fire you saw was one of the Pokemon's attacks," Cynthia sighed, ignoring him. "She escaped my grasp, I'm afraid. A shame, because I would've loved to catch such a vigorous creature."

"Was…" Niss took a step forward, eyes wide open. "Was that Pokemon a Monferno?"

Cynthia was somewhat taken aback by the intensity behind her voice. She tried to form a soothing smile and replied.

"I'm afraid not."

Her shoulders fell, "Oh…"

He grabbed her hand softly, almost palpably feeling her disappointment. He was glad to be wrong, too.

"Well, I'm glad you could escape that thing safely," he told Cynthia. "Though… it might be dangerous if that Pokemon's still running around with something that makes her so strong."

"Wait, that's it!"

He slightly jumped at the volume of Niss' voice, whose color seemed to return to her face. She turned to him and smiled.

"We're going to catch that Pokemon for you!" she assured, clasping his hand strongly. "You don't have a fire type yet!"

"Wait, what?" he asked, incredulous.

Cynthia clapped her hands together, eyes shining with excitement, "Oh, that would be so lovely! I wish I could stay to see both of you fight."

"Hold on, I don't know if…"

"Alright, it's decided!" Niss punched her palm, showing a smile full of determination. "Sorry old lady, but I'm afraid me kicking your butt in a battle will have to wait for next time."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow, amused.

"If you say so," she laughed, as if she knew something she didn't.

Barry didn't even have time to protest as Niss grabbed him by the arm and walked into the deep of the forest. He barely saw the outline of Cynthia as she waved them goodbye.

"Have fun, kids!" she cheered. "Try not to get yourselves killed!"

 

* * *

 

 

The metaphorical trail of breadcrumbs couldn't have been easier to follow if there were giant, neon arrows guiding them. The smell of burnt earth became more potent as they advanced, and all around them small embers covered some of the bushes and tree trunks scattered around. Barry released Razen to extinguish any they saw, even if the humidity of the place made a forest fire an unlikely possibility.

Inyssa couldn't fathom why a fire Pokemon would hang around a place so… counterintuitive to its nature. As far as she remembered, most fire types tended to appear around the outskirts of the mountains and the southern parts of Sinnoh, where it wasn't as ruthlessly cold.

 _Maybe it belonged to a trainer_ , she thought.

She wasn't very thrilled with the possibility.

Next to her Barry looked the most nervous she'd seen him in a long time. He walked with a stiff posture, fists clenched. His cheeks were pale, as well as his lips.

"This place feels weird," he said. "Maybe we should turn around."

She tried her best to make her expression unreadable, "Come on, we can handle anything this forest throws at us," she jokingly poked at his side with her elbow. "We're together, right?"

He nodded nervously, smiling. "Y-yeah. Right."

"Prii!"

Pedri's cry startled them. He stopped in his tracks, and a moment later Kuro lowered his legs, the fur on his back bristling violently. It took her a second to hear it, and when she did she really wished she hadn't eaten breakfast that morning.

A guzzling, tearing sound of teeth against flesh came from behind one of the nearby trees. With utmost carefulness they approached, walking into a miniscule valley between a group of trees.

A quadruped Pokemon stood in the middle of it, her skin black as coal. Thick, silver bones resembling a ribcage grew from her back to her stomach, becoming thinner as they went down. They couldn't quite see her face, which was lowered into…

Barry let out something halfway between a gasp and a sob, and Inyssa came close to doing the same. Under one of her front paws lay the bloody corpse of a Pokemon, its body incinerated so badly she couldn't even make out which species it was. The stench of burnt meat made her heave as she pressed a hand over her mouth.

She knew she shouldn't have been so disgusted by the scene. Of course some Pokemon ate others, she'd known that her entire life. But that reality crashing with her so unexpectedly… she couldn't help but be somewhat terrified.

The black beast slowly turned towards them. Demonic, silver horns grew from the side of her head and curled backwards. Her canine snout was a faded, orange color, mostly stained with the dark red of its victim. There was no white in her eyes.

As if by reflex alone she took out her Pokédex:

_Houndoom: The Cerberus Pokemon – Fire/Dark type. The pungent-smelling flame that shoots from its mouth results from toxins burning in its body, and should be avoided at all costs. They are very territorial and aggressive, though most will become loyal if caught by the right trainer. Long ago, people imagined its eerie howls to be the call of the grim reaper._

"Oh that's just fucking wonderful," she whispered.

The Houndoom snarled, sending a low rumble through the ground. Faint wisps of fire escaped through her fangs as she fully turned towards them. Inyssa noticed something hanging from its neck, tied by a string. A bright red rectangle of stone, looking eerily similar to…

"It's one of those plate things," Barry said, voice shaking. "I… I knew I felt something weird from here."

She nodded wearily. Images from their time in the abandoned Chateau and close to that statue in Eterna came to mind.

The dark beast bared its fangs as it approached. Inyssa's hands went to Steven's Pokeball, while Kuro jumped in front of her and snarled in return. Pedri stood still, waiting.

"Rwaaaa!"

She physically felt the roar as it traveled through the air, hitting her square in the chest. Houndoom threw her head back, and a pulsing ball of flame started to form on her maw, growing with every second that passed.

"Is that…" Barry asked, eyes going wide.

 _Flamethrower!_  her mind screamed.

The column of fire fell on them a lot faster than they expected. Through its deafening roar she barely made out the sound of Barry yelling something, and less than a second after Pedri jumped forward, both fins raised. The attack clashed against the barrier of energy around them, exploding into a dozen threads of flame flying in all directions.

They still felt the heat, even after the fire dissipated. Around them in a circle the ground was scorched black, and a few nearby trees had been toppled down.

Houndoom let out a sound that could've been a chuckle, followed by a small ember. She stood on her four legs straight, and waited expectantly. The previous attack must have been a warning, Inyssa realized. She was giving them a chance to get out of her territory now that they'd survived it.

The thought made her skin hot with anger. The nerve of that fucking thing…

"Wait, Niss!" Barry yelled once he saw her expression. "I don't know… I think we should leave her alone. She looks dangerous."

She didn't fail to notice the way his hands were shaking, and that made her even madder. She had to restore his faith in himself, no matter what.

"This is nothing compared with that Golurk," she said, smiling. "We can catch this thing no problem."

As if on cue Hao's voice came to life, startling her.

"Ni Ni, do you need my help? Trust me, those plates are bad news; I know exactly how much stronger and angrier they can make you if you're close to them."

Realization came to her then. What was it Cynthia had said when she ran into them? That the Pokemon she was hunting had stolen something from her? Something which, conveniently, made fire attacks stronger? Her eyes fell on the string connecting the plate with the Houndoom's neck; there was no way it could've been was an accident. Cynthia had set this encounter up, for some ungodly reason.

She'd have time to worry about that later. Now there were more pressing matters at hand.

"You stay in there," she ordered Hao. "A single dark attack would knock you out, and I need you in case we need to send an emergency beacon. Barry…" she turned to him. "I promise you; we can do this. We'll have Pedri and Kitsune be our defense, while we attack with Razen, Steven and Kuro."

The boy seemed unsure for a moment, but after she smiled a certain weight seemed to drop off his shoulders. He returned it as best he could and nodded, grabbing two Pokeballs from his belt. Inyssa did the same.

Houndoom realized there would be no peaceful resolution, and lowered her knees once more, ready to attack. Three consecutive flashes of light exploded around the trainers, from which materialized their partners.

"Steven, fly around and provide support!" she yelled, sending her palm forward. "Kuro, try to shock her!"

"Kitsune, f-form a barrier around us!" Barry ordered, voice wavering. "Razen, Aqua Jet! Pedri, get ready to jump in to defend him!"

The orange otter smiled as he covered his body in a thick sheet of water, and with a hit of his two tails against the ground flew forward with incredible speed. Houndoom opened her maw once more, but was too slow. The entire weight and momentum of Razen fell on her. She was thrown a few feet backwards, her sharp claws stopping her before she slammed against a tree.

She stared daggers at her opponent, and without waiting a moment her powerful legs propelled her towards him. She covered her fangs in pulsing black energy and lunged at his neck, maw wide open.

Her concentration broke as something slammed onto her side with the strength of a cannonball. The Staravia had flown down to attack, but was now stuck there for a few seconds. Houndoom switched directions mid fall and threw herself at him, snout brimming with flames.

Light shone at the edge of her vision, and a heartbeat later all her muscles contracted in pain as electricity hit her back. The flames evaporated as she crashed into the cold ground, jolts dancing around her body. The Luxio's cheeky laugh reached her, making her blood boil and skin steam.

Inyssa stared intently at what was happening, giving orders when needed and keeping an eye on the flow of the battle. Next to her Barry was slowly easing back into his usual confidence, at the sight of how well they were handling the situation. Their Pokemon moved so much faster than they had done only a couple weeks ago, it was almost breathtaking.

She noticed their opponent grow more aggressive and impatient as the battle unfolded. Luckily Kuro was doing his job and breaking her concentration every time she tried to use Flamethrower. Still, the Houndoom might've tried to escape if things got too badly. She needed to prevent that. Her fingers closed around Bret's Pokeball, and a second later the flash of light evaporated around him.

"What are you doing!?" Barry turned to her, incredulous. "If that thing even touches Bret…"

She glared at him, "I have a plan, dummy. Bret, can you use Grass Knot with one hand?"

The Roselia raised one eyebrow, as if he were offended by the implication that he couldn't. She simply smiled and nodded.

"Here's what I need you to do."

She whispered something into his ear. Bret softly pressed one of his rose covered hands against the ground. It rumbled for a moment, and all around the battlefield dozens of thick vines exploded upwards, blocking any possible exit the Houndoom might've considered. As she got close to one of them all the nearby vines fell down like whips onto her body, forcing her back to the middle of the clearance.

"Alright, we've got her on the ropes!" she clenched her fist, almost tasting victory.

Barry formed a goofy smile, "Don't you mean on the vines?"

"That pun physically hurt me," Hao spoke from the Pokétch. "And I don't have a body, so make of that what you will."

"Come on, let him have this one," she tittered, looking up at the battle. "Everyone, attack at the same time!"

A cavalcade of attacks pelted the Houndoom, whose speed was declining fast as the fight continued. She couldn't last much longer; not with that kind of assault. Preemptively Inyssa started looking for a ball inside her coat, ready to hand it to Barry when the moment was right.

That's when Barry jumped, letting out a gasp of surprise.

 

* * *

 

 

He'd almost forgotten about the egg.

Yes, it was kind of a horrible thing to forget about, but he'd like to think he had some kind of excuse. Still, the moment he felt that violent tug in his backpack reality came back to remind him, like a mother telling you to clear your room if you didn't want to lose your videogame privileges.

"What? What is it!?" Niss reacted poorly to his surprise, tone full of worry.

He took the thing out of his backpack, roars and grunts of battle still echoing around him, and held it in his hands as if it were a priceless antique. Fear and anticipation were clear in his face as they both stared at the egg. Just when he thought he'd imagined it, a small crack appeared on the shell as it shook.

"Oh… Oh no," he whispered, his voice much thinner than usual. "Wait, stay in there a bit longer! This isn't a good time!"

"This is literally the worst time!" Niss threw her hands to the sky.

The egg had no consideration for his pleas, unfortunately. Whatever was inside pushed and struggled to escape with all its might, sending an almost heartbeat-like pulse of energy outwards. Every time the cracks on the shell exacerbated light would filter from the inside, making it look like Barry was holding a very strange lantern.

The strain finally proved too much. Light blinded them as the top of the egg exploded, which caught the attention of their Pokemon and the wounded Houndoom.

Once it dissipated the first thing Barry noticed was two small, beady eyes looking straight at him. Its head was a soft, almost white-ish yellow, with spikes at the top in the form of a crown. Both arms were small and chubby, as were the legs. The entire rest of her body was still encased in the white shell, covered in blue and red marks.

Niss' Pokedex was the first thing to break the silence:

_Togepi: The Sunshine Pokemon – Normal/Fairy Type. The shell encasing its body is said to be filled with its positive emotions, which it'll share with those that are kind to it. Even though they are fragile there seems to be a strange, bottomless power residing inside them, which they will use in moments of need._

"Chi-prrii!"

The small bugger smiled at the sound of her name, so happily it almost hurt. She moved her stubby arms up, as if trying to get a hold of Barry, who was still too shocked to react.

Their momentary confusion gave Houndoom the opportunity she needed. With her opponents distracted she jumped backwards as far as possible, landing just out of reach of the vines. She lowered her body as if ready to pounce, but instead closed her eyes and tried to control her breathing.

"W-what is it doing!?" Niss came back to reality first, turning towards the fire Pokemon. "Shit, Barry, put that thing inside a Pokeball for now!"

"What? No!" he pulled Togepi closer, almost hugging her. "She was just born, we don't know if it's safe to put her there! Hey, hold on!" He felt her miniscule fingers grabbing his shirt, "Look, I love you too but this isn't the time for hugs!"

They heard a violent jolt as Kuro ran forward, his body covered in electricity. He was almost at the range to attack when the first wave hit him.

A circle of scorched earth appeared around Houndoom. Her skin turned from black to a bright, molten red as steam rose from every part of her body. The heat exuding from her traveled like a shockwave, like the water of a pond after something has been thrown in it.

Barry almost dropped Togepi when it reached him, making his eyes water and turning his throat as dry as sandpaper. In front of him Kitsune punched the air with his spoon, forming another energy shield around them.

"What is that!?" he yelled, panic clear in his voice.

Niss, quick as always, pointed with the Pokedex at the blinding ball of flames that was their opponent. The electronic voice was barely hearable through the rumble shaking the ground.

_Inferno: The user of this attack gathers the heat in their body and releases it all at once in a devastating explosion of flames. Any Pokemon caught by it will receive a serious burn._

Images flashed through his mind, of the fight with Mars and the way his friends had ended in the floor, bloodied. A painful shock ran through his body.

"Everyone, fall back!" Niss hollered, eyes wide open. "Behind the barrier, now!"

"We gotta run away! That thing's too dangerous!"

"We're so close!" she protested, fingers turning pale against her Pokeballs. "If we can just…"

He didn't have time to protest. For a single moment which felt like an eternity, the rumble stopped, and all the fire and heat around Houndoom was sucked into herself. Silence swallowed the forest.

Then it exploded, as bright as a flash bang and as strong as an earthquake. The flames swallowed everything in their path, turning the ground into obsidian glass. He felt the impact in his bones when it crashed against the barrier, and some of the heat slipped through. He didn't see how many of their Pokemon managed to shield themselves.

The barrier didn't shatter, but barely. As soon as the attack ended Kitsune released it, and promptly fell face first to the floor, unconscious. In front of them lay nothing but smoke, slowly climbing the air. The trees and vegetation around them had been burnt so badly that not even an ember remained.

That's when he saw it, and his heart dropped. Razen lay a few feet ahead of them, half his body steaming and part of his fur covered in small flames. He was flat on his back, and on top of him was Houndoom, immobilizing his arms with her paws.

"RAZEN!"

His scream tore through his throat painfully. He could feel Togepi moving her hands incessantly from one side to the other, but his mind didn't process it, too busy being frozen by terror.

All Razen saw through his half closed eyes was the beast's maw open, followed by a heat so intense he felt like he was going to pass out. He heard his trainer's scream, followed by those of Inyssa, ordering her Pokemon to help. But it was too late, and he knew it.

"Chii-prrii!"

Togepi screamed as she threw her arms as high up as she could. Startled, Barry looked down and saw that the tip of them had started to glow with a blue, pulsing light.

Niss' Pokedex spoke again, umprompted:

_Metronome: The user waggles its fingers and taps into its hidden, cosmic power, summoning a completely random move._

As if on cue, Togepi threw her hands forward. For a moment nothing happened, and the next second Barry was blinded and thrown backwards like a ragdoll. A thick, ivory pillar of energy travelled forward, swallowing the Houndoom whole. The last thing he heard before falling to the ground was her ear piercing shriek of pain.

He made sure to land on his back, which both kept his new Pokemon safe and knocked the air out of his lungs.

"Barry! Are you okay?"

With difficulty he dragged himself to his feet, the ball of joy and destruction still sitting happily on his palms. He looked at her first, then at the battlefield where Houndoom had fallen unconscious after the last attack.

"What… what the heck was that?" he rubbed his forehead, still a little dizzy. "How did you do that?"

Togepi let out another chirp of happiness, still smiling. He and Niss exchanged a puzzled look.

"That thing is insane," she laughed, eyes still wide in shock. "And… it's a baby."

Barry knew the fact that Togepi had been able to perform such a powerful attack was mostly luck, but he couldn't help but agree. Though at that point he was more relieved for Razen than excited about his new Pokemon.

Without delay he returned all his partners to their respective balls, and Inyssa did the same soon after. It was clear they were both still somewhat shaken by the events that had transpired.

They approached the unconscious Houndoom carefully, and once at her side Inyssa kneeled next to it and snapped her collar, releasing the stone plate hanging from her neck.

"We can take a look at this later," she said, saving it in the pocket of her coat. "For now, I think there's something you need to do."

He nodded, still shivering a bit, and took an UltraBall from his vest. It fell on the Houndoom's body and turned it into light, swallowing it. It wiggled thrice before confirming the catch, and only then did he allow himself a sigh of relief.

He felt Niss' hand on his shoulder, followed by an expression that looked half regret and half happiness.

"Sorry for pressuring you so much into this," she said, looking down. "I'm just… not used to seeing you so down, and I kinda freaked out. I wanted you to have a nice time."

"Come on Niss, no need to apologize!" he smiled brightly and, after putting his new catch on his belt, ruffled her hair playfully. "Thanks to you I have two new teammates!"

She gave him a non-verbal thanks, her cheeks turning a pale red.

"So… what are you gonna name them?"

"Well, I was thinking of naming this girl Wrathia," he said, looking down at his belt. "As for this cutie here…"

He raised the Togepi high into the air, as she giggled and shook her arms and legs.

"I think I'll go with Auri."


	33. A Legend Worth a Penny

Lucas let the stack of papers fall on top of the table, which shook violently under the weight and earned him a few confused looks from the rest of the people in the Pokemon Center.

His back sang in joy as he sat down for the first time that day, the sun having already gone down hours ago. A low rumble from the pit of his stomach told him it was probably time to order dinner, if they hadn't stopped serving yet. He lazily looked down to his Pokétch; 23:30 PM. He still had some time.

Ten minutes later he sat down again with a glass of lime juice and a plate of parmesan chicken with tomatoes as a side. Tasty, even if it didn't come close in any way to Professor Rowan's cooking. Something else joined hunger in the things setting on his stomach, though he decided to ignore it. He was a fully fledged researcher now, and there was no time to be missing his old life.

He leaned back on the chair and took a deep breath, looking at the impressive pile of papers in front of him. This was it, this was his big break. Thanks to the Pokemon Saturn gave him he now had a chance to prove himself. Now that all the logistics were taken care of, all he needed was to convince Rowan to give him enough money to cover the materials and building process for his project.

A tingle of excitement ran up his spine. It was almost maddening, in a good way, having an idea buzzing around your head endlessly. But now he had the opportunity to make it a reality, to create something with his own two hands. He couldn't help but smile, even if the kids around him stared at him in a weird way.

At least this confirmed it; he'd chosen the right path to follow. That was a huge weight off his shoulders.

_Thanks to Saturn…_

The thought made him gulp, a pale pink tinting his cheeks. It really had been; were it not for the man saving him that day in Lake Valor, were it not for the amazing Pokemon he'd gifted him as if it were nothing…

The fork hit the plate as he scrambled for the tenth time that day to check on his Pokétch. Yep, his message was still there, as overwhelming as the moment it'd been sent. Still without reply, too, because if there was one thing Lucas couldn't deal with that was other people, especially when they made him feel the way Saturn did.

_Dear god, calm down. You've only met him once._

He shook his head in embarrassment and looked down at the screen, reading the message again even though he'd memorized the words already:

_Hi Lucas! I hope I'm not bothering you by sending you a message. It's me, Saturn!_

_Hopefully you remember me from Lake Valor. I imagine such an experience would be difficult to forget, ha ha. Though now that I think about it people have told me I have a plain and forgettable face, so who knows._

_Ah, sorry for rambling. Anyway, how's the little guy I gave you? Are you two getting along? By now I'm sure you already know about all the amazing properties his feathers have, but if not I'd be happy to teach you all I've learned about that particular species. As for the Drapion that attacked you; I want you to know I've been taking care of her, and she feels sorry for what she did. Even if it doesn't seem like it._

_Blegh, rambling again. The reason I sent this message is because I wanted to ask you something. Remember the chat we had before, about my job and the things we wanted to do in life? Well I thought it would be nice to talk about it again, if you want to. Not professionally or anything, more like… I was thinking maybe a cup of coffee, or tea? We could hang out._

_I'd understand if you're busy, but I hope you can squeeze in some time for this._

_Have a good day!_

Lucas breathed in deep, his hands shaking ever so lightly.

Yep, totally under control. He was absolutely not freaking out because someone as cool as Saturn wanted to hang out with him. By no means, no sir.

In any case, he had to reply sooner or later, it would've been rude not to even if the mere thought made his anxiety spike. There was nothing to lose, he assured himself. Saturn already liked him, already wanted to hang out with him. There was absolutely no way he could mess that up.

Well, he could think of a lot of ways in which he could. In fact he'd been doing so for the entire day.

He shook his head, scaring the thought away. With as much determination as he could gather he started typing. He wanted to emulate the formal yet somewhat funny format of his message, but after realizing he had no flare for comedy he stuck to simply sending a simple reply. He'd be delighted to hang out, and wanted to know when he was free.

There, done.

At least until the moment Saturn would reply back, but he'd take care of that later. Sighing in relief he drank the rest of his juice, laying back and with his other hand over his stomach, which was either full of food or butterflies. He couldn't quite tell.

A stray whisper from one of the nearby tables made its way to him.

"…ome say that Inyssa girl was there…"

He froze for a moment, glass still half raised towards him. Had he… had he heard Inyssa's name? No, it had to be a coincidence. Barry had sent him a message two days ago that they were heading to Pastoria, but he didn't expect them to arrive until tomorrow night at the earliest.

Still, just to make sure he turned around as subtly as he could towards where he'd heard that. Two tables away there were two young girls around his age talking, belt full of Pokeballs and eyes set on something at the other extreme of the room.

"Really?" the blonde one said, incredulous. "How is she in the same place as them every time?"

"They say she and her friend are hunting them. They go wherever they appear, and take them out."

It wasn't just them. The entire Center seemed to come to life as the trainers around Lucas started speaking with each other in hurried tones and whispers. They were all looking at something behind him.

Slowly he rotated on his chair, looking up at the television hanging from the opposite wall.

He felt his veins turn to ice.

_Massive terrorist attack on Veilstone City: Culprits have been apprehended._

The headline glowed red at the bottom of the screen, making Lucas wish he hadn't eaten so much. However the worst part of it wasn't that, but the two static images above it.

The one at the left was of a tough looking girl he'd never seen before, who according to the pop up at the side of her photo was the Gym leader of Veilstone.

The second was Inyssa.

It was a somewhat old photo, surely taken from the footage of her beating Fantina a few weeks ago. For a single, horrible moment he had the horrible thought that something bad might've happened to her, until he realized they wouldn't show that kind of photo if that were the case.

He couldn't hear the announcer's voice over the chatter of the Pokemon Center, which furthered his confusion. At least until the headline changed, finally giving him the explanation he wanted.

_Gym leader Maylene Avalon and local trainer Inyssa Dawn fought and defeated the terrorist leader._

It was a good thing he wasn't still holding the glass of juice, otherwise it would've fallen to the ground.

"She did  _what_!?"

 

* * *

 

 

"For the last time, that name is stupid."

Inyssa crossed her arms as she walked, a giggling Barry at her right.

He'd surely found his good mood ever since the incident with the Houndoom, who now walked alongside him. The beast who'd seemed so brutally dangerous now struck her as nothing more than a normal Pokemon with some spooky aesthetic to her. She figured half of what made her so terrifying before was the effect the Flame Plate had over her, while the other half was due to them walking on her while she was eating, which now that she thought about it was quite rude.

Still, she didn't expect such a drastic change of attitude. Sure, Wrathia still looked grumpy and somewhat cruel, but at no point did she look badly at her new trainer. As far as she knew she'd been defeated, and now she took orders from Barry. No fuzz or complaining. She was happy to finally find someone who could use her as part of their team. She also seemed to have a fancy for Pedri, who blushed every time the Houndoom looked at him.

At least that's what Inyssa figured was going through the Pokemon's mind. She was a hard one to read, unlike the Togepi weakly snoring in Barry's arms. The small bugger had eaten half their food reserves immediately after the fight, only to fall asleep for… what? Had it been six hours already? Adorable as hell, even if she wouldn't admit it out loud.

"You're just being a grump like always," Barry smiled, his teeth contrasting against the darkness of the night. "It's not a bad title at all."

"Okay yeah, what if…" she made a gesture with her hand, thinking it over. "What if they used  _your_  favorite song as your trainer title, huh? Would you be known as  _Disco Beauty_?"

Barry curled his lips upwards in a sly smile, " _Lipstick's bright and fruity, dance floor's full of cuties…_!" he began singing, moving his shoulders from side to side.

She rolled her eyes, smiling, and continued where he left off, "… _they call us the Disco Beauties_!"

" _Whoo oh_!" they both yelled in unison, making the Pokemon around them flinch painfully. " _Dancing is our duty, whoo oh! We're owners of this party_!"

They didn't even make it until the end of the chorus before breaking into a tired, high pitched laughter. Barry's entire body shook, and yet the small Pokemon in his hands didn't show a single sign that she'd be waking up from all the ruckus. Pedri and Wrathia weren't very happy however, as they exchanged an irritated look which boiled down to:

_Are they always like this?_

_You'll get used to it._

"Hey, hey…" Barry pointed at her with his finger, still struggling not to laugh. "Come on, you can't tell me that wouldn't be one heck of a name."

"Okay, yeah you're right," she was forced to admit. "If I had to face someone who's title was that of the cheesiest song from twenty years ago I'd probably be scared out of my mind."

They kept walking for a while, talking mindlessly about unimportant things, simply enjoying spending time with each other. Neither Inyssa's pain nor Barry's anxiety had completely gone away, and they knew they wouldn't for quite some time. It was a mark Mars left with them, one which they were more than happy to endure together.

Route 214 came to an end almost an hour later, once Mt Coronet stopped blocking the horizon at their right and the ominous mist of Valor Lakefront replaced it, filtering through the thick enclosure of trees. They didn't talk as much as they passed through, somewhat because of exhaustion and mostly because being so close to the lake made them strangely nervous.

It took them almost an hour to reach Route 213, though to Inyssa it ended up being absolutely worth it.

The soft ground beneath them turned into an endless, golden blanket of sand which spread in every direction, stopping only once it met the gentle waves of the ocean. The salty scent of the wind hit them square in the face, ruffling their hair and almost blowing Inyssa's hat out of her head.

Looks of disbelief were pretty much identical on their faces as they stood before the beach. Inyssa was pretty sure she wouldn't have minded staring at the way the moonlight reflected off the dark water, waving and shifting beautifully, for hours.

What finally brought them back to reality was a sudden break in the calm of the waves. A serpentine looking blue creature jumped high into the air, catching a passing Wingull in its enormous maw before diving into the water again.

She gulped, "W-wow…"

"This is so cool!" Barry yelled, jumping in place excitedly. "Niss, Niss! You've never been to a beach before, right?"

She furrowed her brow, trying to remember. Her past was kinda blurry sometimes.

"No, I don't think so," she said. "Mom used to go to them for photo shoots, but I never went with her."

"Oh man, we used to go to the one in Stark Island all the time with dad!" he smiled, his bounciness almost contagious. "But this one is so much prettier!"

That was an understatement, she thought. She'd seen pictures of big beaches before, but being at the base of one was something a simple image couldn't convey. She took a tentative step forward, her boots sinking a few inches on the soft sand. A spur of fear went from her toes to the top of her head until she realized that was supposed to happen, and blushed in embarrassment.

"Shit, walking in this is weird," she said, both arms raised to the side. "It's like… it's like I'm slipping with every step I take, but not really."

Barry couldn't help but giggle at her comment, "It feels a lot more natural if you're barefoot! We should take our shoes off and walk the rest of the way to Pastoria on this sand!"

"What? But we're gonna freeze!" she protested.

"No way, sand absorbs a lot of warmth and keeps it until the next day," he said. "Trust me, it's gonna feel amazing!"

Slowly and with more than her fair share of doubt she took off her boots and socks, following Barry's example. The touch against the grains of sand was slightly painful at first, and as he'd said also lukewarm. She took a couple steps forward, wiggling her toes as she got used to the odd feeling.

"This is… kind of alien," she observed. "But also cool, I guess."

"Told you!" he patted her on the shoulder. "Hm… It's a shame is the middle of the night though, there are no Pokemon or people around."

She followed his eyes to their right, where the beach extended almost towards the horizon. From where the waves met the sand it rose slightly in the opposite direction, until it reached an abrupt end against a cliff that must've been at least thirty feet tall. At the top rested a huge row of impressive ivory buildings, possibly tourist resorts of some kind. They looked fancy.

At the end of the beach was a building that broke through the other side of the cliff, and what she figured was the entrance to Pastoria. If they kept walking they'd reach it in an hour or so, which meant they wouldn't get to see the beach during the day. More importantly, Barry wouldn't get to see it, and that was unacceptable.

"Well, what if we sleep here?" she shrugged, trying to make her offer casual. "Between Bret and Wrathia I'm sure we could make a good bonfire, and we could use our backpacks like pillows."

Her friend's eyes twinkled at her words, and he unconsciously started flapping his hands in excitement.

"I bought marshmallows!" he declared proudly. "We can roast them over the fire!"

That settled it. Without further discussion they released all their Pokemon and started working on making a healthy fire which would last the entire night.

They unfortunately discovered that the leftovers from Bret's Magical Leaf didn't burn very well and released a musky, heavy stench which was rather unpleasant. A bit of thinking later they asked Shadi and Pedri if they could go back to the forest and bring them some dry, sturdy wood. In the meantime they went looking for stones to make the circle where they would put the bonfire. Steven flew around the beach locating them, while Kitsune used his psychic powers to levitate them back. Kuro playfully ran around Wrathia, who pretended not to notice him as she lay down on the sand, wanting nothing more than a good night's sleep. Razen jumped into the water as soon as he was released, and was currently picking a fight with a couple of Tentacool who'd looked at him wrong.

It took their Pokemon half an hour to gather everything inside the ring of stones, but it became worth it the moment Wrathia breathed life into their bonfire. The flames rose steadily, until they almost matched the trainers in height. It burnt with a calm, gentle heat that dove under their skin and made them comfortable and sleepy.

Everyone gathered around it, with Inyssa and Barry laying down next to each other, staring at the sea. She could feel her eyelids closing by themselves, the cackle of the fire roaring behind her.

 _This is just like when we were kids_ , she thought, smiling to herself.  _And we would watch scary movies and eat snacks and stay up talking in the sofa until we fell asleep together._

Something unrelated to the bonfire warmed the inside of her chest, and a terrible feeling of nostalgia washed over her. Next to her Barry lay with his hands behind his head, staring calmly at the sky. She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in everything. The rough texture of the sand under her, the sound of wood burning, the smell of sea breeze mixed with pale smoke, the varied snores of their Pokemon around them as they tried their best to fall asleep.

And Barry's slow, gentle breathing next to her. In that moment, as far as she knew, it was the most pleasant sound she'd ever heard.

"I really missed this."

The words left her mouth before she could process them, and for the first time she didn't care. She was too tired to care, too sleepy to think about what she was saying.

"What do you mean?" asked Barry, eyes barely open.

"It's been… kinda nonstop these past weeks," she sighed. "This… this is nice. I'm sure tomorrow I'll be aching to get to Pastoria and fight the Gym Leader, but…"

She felt his smile without looking at it, "Yeah, I get what you mean. Sometimes we need to take a break like this."

"Besides…" she formed a smile. "Next week's gonna be pretty hectic. It's not every day someone turns eighteen."

His eyes went wide, and he let out a gasp of surprise.

"Oh my god did you forget your b…"

"My birthday!" he said, half scream and half laugh. "Oh my gosh I completely forgot!"

She shook her head, trying to suppress a laugh, "Ah, maybe I should've shut up. That way I could throw you a surprise party that's more of a surprise than usual."

Barry knit his eyebrows, lost in thought, "I… I think there's gonna be an actual party this weekend in Pastoria. Like, a huge bonfire one with a bunch of teens."

"How do you know that?" 

"Oh right, I never got around to telling you, with all the stuff that happened."

He described the strange woman he'd encountered just before being attacked by Mars, along with the conversation he had with her. Inyssa listened carefully, her eyebrows getting closer the more he spoke.

"A Hex Maniac, really?" she shook her head. "She was probably trying to scam you."

"She said we shouldn't call her that. It's impolite or something," he shrugged. "And… I dunno, she seemed pretty legit."

"That's their job, looking legit so people buy into the crap they want to sell you. They're like shameless circus performers."

Barry shifted uncomfortably in the sand, and she realized she'd been a bit more rude than she intended. The last thing she wanted right now was to make him feel bad after all the effort she'd put into doing the exact opposite.

"Anyway… about this party," she tried to change the subject. "We could celebrate there, if you want to. I'm sure Reiko and Percy would like to come too. We might have to convince Lucas," she scratched her cheek. "And hey, you're gonna be old enough to drink!"

"R-really?" his eyes went wide as realization hit him. "Oh… yeah, I guess I will. I didn't even think about it."

"It'll just be a couple sips to celebrate, no need to worry about it. I might try some myself."

Barry let out a short lived chuckle, though she noticed a hint of nervousness in it. Was the topic making him uncomfortable? She grit her teeth and tried to think of why. As far as she knew neither he or anyone in his family had any problem with alcoh…

_Ah._

Of course, Johanna. She would've been somewhat charmed at his worry if the thought didn't turn so sour inside her. It wasn't like she'd ever tried drinking or anything; there was no way she'd ever end up like her. She tried to shake that thought off her head.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," she tried to play it off as a joke. "If the night of the party has a view as good as this one I'm sure it'll be amazing. I mean, just look up there."

She raised her chin slightly, pointing upwards. The stars shone like lost beacons, brighter than she'd ever seen them before. It would've been hard to pick a spot in the sky that wasn't being at least somewhat illuminated by them.

"Yeah, I've been watching them for a few minutes," Barry said, smiling. "I wanna see how many constellations I can find."

She narrowed her eyes and tried to follow his example, to no avail. To her the stars were just dots of light.

"Wish I could see them," she sighed. "I've never been good at stuff that requires you to connect dots or look past the obvious thing."

"You just need to make your brain work differently. Look, up there!" he pointed at the northwest part of the sky, where a clump of about six stars were located. "That's Leon, the hunter. The two stars that are next to each other pointing west are the arrow, and the rest are his body and bow."

She tried her best to determine the shapes. Nope, absolutely no idea what the hell he was talking about.

"Well, if anything you're pretty good at finding patterns," she said. "I never liked Leon, though. He was kind of a douche."

Barry nodded, "He… did trick that talking Ursaring and then killed her cubs. Here, I'll find a better one…" He pointed his finger at the sky and moved it around, stopping close to the horizon. "There! See those eight stars in like, a half moon shape?"

The constellation he was pointing at actually resonated with her, somewhat. She narrowed her eyes, trying to study it better. It looked so familiar.

"Is that… Synn?" she asked, hesitantly.

"Yeah! He has the giant fan and everything!" he smiled excitedly. "Remember when we saw that movie about him?"

"It was terribly acted and directed," she nodded. "Though the main lead was pretty hot."

She stared at what was supposed to be Synn, unblinking. It had been a long time since she'd even heard that name, even though she'd loved the man so much in her youth. Memories came rushing to her, images of Shadi sitting with a storybook next to her bed, telling her about all the amazing adventures and myths about the man, all while she listened carefully, shaking with excitement. She felt a sting in her eyes, but decided to ignore it.

Synn… the name itself felt heavy and powerful. Her sister once told her it meant  _likeness_  and  _unity,_ the two things the man embodied the most. Sinnoh itself was named after him, which she considered pretty high praise. An entire region bearing your name seemed like a pretty good indicator that you did well in life.

According to the tales she'd heard, he was the first human to ever befriend a legendary Pokemon. His sister was the second, and his best friend the third.

He'd befriended Mesprit effortlessly, and together they went in too many adventures to count. It was said he carried with him a gigantic paper fan, with which he could control the wind itself and even create music with it. He had the ability to make friends with almost any creature or person he encountered, and his words were as sweet as honey.

"…wish I could be like him someday," Barry's voice brought her back to reality. "He was always my favorite hero."

She smiled at him, "You're already pretty close, honestly. All you need is a giant fan and to become famous, and we're working on one of those things."

"Ha, I wish," he shrugged. "What about you? Do you wanna be like him also or would you rather be true to your name?"

Her smile fell down as soon as he said those words. Probably crashed and burned somewhere, not to be seen for a while.

"I… I don't think so."

For a while she'd managed to forget the person she was named after, which was a blessing as far as she was concerned. She didn't like the woman one bit, even if she was one of the legendary heroes of Sinnoh.

Synn's younger sister, Nyss. According to an old story their parents named her the exact opposite of his brother due to how different she was from him, and boy were they fucking right. She could count with half the fingers of one hand the amount of legends starring her which didn't end in bloodshed or some kind of horrible tragedy.

It wasn't like Nyss was a bloodthirsty monster, far from it. From a young age she'd been rumored to be serious, extremely disciplined and equipped with a burning sense of justice and righteousness. It was said Synn once offered half his riches to anyone who could manage to make the woman laugh, and at the end of the day he didn't lose a single penny.

She loved her country fervently, even though she wasn't as much a people person as her brother. At the age of fifteen she'd joined the king's army, and by the time she turned eighteen she'd been promoted to be the main general. Enemies fell before her like wheat to a sickle blade, and those who met her in battle were said to be too terrified to even raise their weapons against her.

She and Synn fought together in the final battle against King Az' army, in the very heart of Kalos. With Azelf at her side it seemed like victory was guaranteed, at least until the mad king unveiled his secret weapon and obliterated Sinnoh's entire army in a matter of seconds. She was saved by his brother, who in his last moments of life ordered Mesprit to teleport her out of the battle.

Until that point it was all well and good, and Inyssa would've considered it a touching story, were it not for what happened after. In a fit of burning fury, and with Az' weapon useless after being used once, Nyss went off alone and carved a bloody crest through what was left of Kalos, burning everything in her path, all the while declaring she would not stop until she found the man who killed her brother.

However the king had disappeared mysteriously, leading her to a hopeless wild goose chase which lasted years. In the end, neither her close friends nor the siblings of the Lake Trio could stand to see her turned into such a monster, and both to maintain her legacy intact and to save the innocent people of Kalos they resorted to extreme measures. They fought her to a standstill, and in the end Mesprit took away her emotions, extinguishing the raging fire burning inside her.

There were few stories after that one, and many different rumors about what happened to her. Whether she died or kept on living as an emotionless shell, unable to ever forget what had happened. The mere thought made her shudder.

One time, in a trip with her mother and Shadi to Kalos, they found a beautiful museum in the middle of Lumiose City. There she found the first painting of Nyss she'd ever seen, and Johanna explained that she was the woman she was named after.

Inyssa stared at the painting, horrified. Nyss was in the center, her right arm forward as she led her army to finally destroy king Az' forces. Her bare arms were adorned with her iconic scars; two flowing bands of red, thorny vines traveling from her wrist to the shoulder. And then there was her face…

To this day she'd never seen someone look so angry, so utterly furious. The woman in the painting looked like she was about to burn down the entire world, and Inyssa had nightmares about her for weeks. She could picture her clearly now, with her burning green eyes and the mask of misery and contempt that was her face. The memory was a bitter one, something she'd rather forget.

"I think I'd rather be my own kind of famous," she said after what seemed like an eternity. "I'm not angry enough to be like Nyss, or silly enough to be like Synn."

"He  _was_  a pretty big goofball," Barry nodded. "Remember that story where he tried to convince everyone that blueberries were the fruit of the devil?"

Her mouth twitched into a sudden smile, "Yeah, according to him they didn't taste nearly as good as they looked. Which is true, but on top of that he was allergic to them." She narrowed her eyes. "I feel like there's a lesson there somewhere."

"You might be right but not for the reasons you think?" he offered. "Just because you don't like something doesn't mean everyone should agree with you?"

"Go to the doctor and learn your allergies?"

They shared another sprout of laughter. A bit lighter than before, its weight pulled down by a knot that had started forming on the back of her throat.

She twiddled her thumbs, thinking carefully what to say, "I… well, to be honest I could never see myself as someone like Synn or Nyss or even the current Champion."

"You're gonna start beating yourself down again?" asked Barry, yawning. "'cause you know what I do when that happens."

"That's not it. It's just that whenever I imagine someone being like… a hero or a Champion or whatever, the mental image I get is nothing like me." She crossed her arms, the flames behind her illuminating her sunken expression. "It tends to be more like you, actually."

Barry pressed a palm against his mouth, trying to contain a laugh, "Really? You have a weird idea of heroes, then."

"I'm serious," she assured him. "I'm… trying to change into someone I could someday consider that kind of person, even if it's not going very well," she smiled sadly. "It's just… I dunno, things are kinda weird. I always go around talking like I'm hot shit, and I don't think even I believe that anymore."

The only thing she heard was the cackle of the fire for a few moments, and she realized the snoring coming from most of their Pokemon had stopped. Were they listening to them?

"I've been thinking about that," Barry said, eyes still set above. "Maybe… maybe it's just an age thing."

She raised an eyebrow, "An… age thing."

"Yeah, like… okay, you know how we hated when people told us we were too young to do this or that? What if this is kinda like that?" he shrugged. "We're not even eighteen yet, Niss. And these past months have been pretty crazy and we've changed a lot. Imagine how much more we're gonna change in the time until we get as old as… I dunno, Percy and Reiko."

She furrowed her brow. Was he implying…

"So… you really think that we are too young," she said, expression unreadable. "Even though people before us became Champions and heroes in the past."

"We're not them, and this isn't a race. There ain't nothing wrong with taking all the time we need to become better trainers and people."

"I… guess," she said, making a face. "Doesn't sit very well with me, but then again patience isn't my strong suit. Actually I think it's not a suit I have at all."

A fruity laugh made its way towards her, which sent a tingle of happiness through her body.

"Still… there are some things being older won't help with," she turned to him. "You know, stuff. Stuff that I've been… diagnosed with." She unconsciously tried to make herself smaller, the words coming out of her mouth with extreme effort. "The anger stuff and all that. I gotta try to get better."

"Yeah, same here," Barry sighed. "Though my thing isn't really… curable."

Something heavy sat on the pit of her stomach, making her fingers curl into themselves. Her left hand traveled the small distance in the sand towards Barry's right one, until they were holding each other.

"I keep telling you," she said, "there's nothing wrong with you. Your thing doesn't make you bad or sick, it just makes you a little different."

"I don't know if forgetting stuff all the time and being annoying and hyperactive is just a little different," he laughed, an unmistakable speck of nervousness in his voice.

"Having a good memory is overrated," she stated, nodding to herself. "And if anyone thinks you're annoying then they're not worth your time. And I'm gonna punch them in the face."

"And I'm gonna stop you because that's rude," he smiled, squeezing her hand. "Thanks, though."

They stood silent for almost a minute, and Inyssa became convinced that their Pokemon were eavesdropping on them. Still, she couldn't gather enough energy to get mad at them.

"Man… you were right, being this age sucks," she admitted. "It's definitely not as bad as being fifteen, but it's not much better either. My body and my head are still a mess."

"It's okay to be a mess sometimes," Barry said with a hushed tone. She could see his eyes struggling to keep open. "Maybe when we're not this old we'll finally convince each other that we're awesome."

His yawn was contagious, and soon she and a few of their Pokemon followed his example. Her eyelids felt heavy.

"We can only hope," she said. "Though for now I think sleeping would be a good idea."

"Yeah… sleeping helps," he closed his eyes, breathing in deeply. "Gets your head all sorted right. Like things inside a wardrobe."

She had absolutely no idea what he meant by that, but decided to let it slide. Neither of them made an attempt to let go of the other's hand as they slowly sank into a deep sleep, the only sound around them that of the gentle roar of the fire and each other's breathing.

"Goodnight Niss."

"Good night, Barry."

 

* * *

 

 

None of the trainers around him heard Lucas' scream, too busy talking amongst themselves. The boy stared at the television screen for almost an entire minute, not believing what he was hearing.

The attack had occurred five days ago, and only recently were the news getting around? Not only that, but he'd gotten the message from Barry that he and Inyssa were headed to Pastoria three days ago, long after Team Galactic attacked the city. How were they able to escape the lockdown without anyone noticing? And why hadn't they told him?

He shifted uncomfortably on his seat. Did they not trust him? Or maybe they didn't think it was important enough to mention. Should he send them a message to ask about it? Would that be weird or rude? He desperately needed to know if they were okay but didn't want to overstep their boundaries, lest they start hating him.

While he sat there, lost in thought, the incessant chatter from the kids around him made its way to his table.

"Didn't you hear?" a tall boy with piercings on his lips and ear said to the girl next to him. "Those two blew up that building in Eterna. They said that Team Galactic was doing a bunch of awful experiments in there."

"I… I thought the explosion was because of a machine that got out of control," she said, meekly.

Another, taller teen next to her laughed, "Come on Rory, don't be so naïve. That's just what the news said to cover up what really happened."

"Then… they were the reason all the people in that building died?" Rory asked. "That's awful!"

"It's justice is what that is," the punk looking boy shrugged. "There were only Galactic grunts inside, and they can all die for all I care. If I ever see those two I'm gonna buy them a drink for doing the region a favor."

Lucas couldn't help but shudder at their words. Was what they were saying true? Last time he'd met with Barry and Inyssa he'd forgot to ask them about what happened on Eterna, and maybe they hadn't brought it up for a reason.

He looked around; the only people not talking about the news were a pair of older trainers; one of them a slim boy with dark hair and fancy clothing, the other a beefy, redhead girl with shifty eyes. As subtly as possible he tried to eavesdrop on those around him, too anxious to even try and talk to them.

"…she has that weird Pokemon, too."

"Yeah, the one she used against Fantina! I've never seen that one before."

"They say it's a Legendary."

"They're calling her the Child of Thorns..."

"She looks like a total brat."

"…read somewhere that she's the Champion's secret daughter."

"…you think she has something to do with Nyss?"

"…he looks like a dork."

"Yeah, and she looks like a vampire."

"I heard they're both super strong!"

"Do you think she'll be the new Champion?"

"No way, she's just a fad. It happens every year; people will forget about her soon…"

"I'd like to meet them!"

Lucas stood still, hearing everything around him, too incredulous to react. Part of him wanted to remain calm and logical; there was no way even half of the rumors circulating about them were true. Even so, after what Saturn had told him about Azelf and everything going on around the Lake Trio…

Was it so out of the question that Barry and Inyssa might have something special, or even supernatural about them? Did they really have a Legendary Pokemon? What if their teams really were as powerful as people speculated?

As he pondered these questions, a mix of unease and excitement washing over him, he couldn't help but ask himself one last thing.

Was this how legends were born?


	34. As Stubborn as a Mudsdale

Enma almost came back to his trainer that night.

He easily could have, standing just outside the light of her bonfire. He'd come down from the abandoned building after a few hours of sleep next to that strange woman, haunted by shadows spiraling around in his nightmares.

Flames danced behind Inyssa, casting a weak light on her pale face. She looked calm, though that was probably due to her being asleep. He'd never joined his previous teammates when they decided to sleep at the foot of her bed. How could he? They were all worthless weaklings too attached to the human they served. Besides, his Pokeball was good enough for him.

He gulped, and couldn't help but take a step forward. Did she still have his Pokeball with her? He couldn't think of any reason why she would. After their last encounter it would be a miracle if she didn't' simply throw it at the ground and stomped on it until it became nothing but a pile of shattered metal. It would be fitting. It would be what he deserved.

What was he doing so close to her, anyway? At any point before he could've found her by going back to the grey city she was in. There was no reason for his visit, other than to quell the irritating feeling inside his chest which had convinced him to come to see her, even if just for a moment.

One last look at her face and he turned around, fingers curling into fists. Steam rose from every one of his pores, and the sand under his feet started to crystallize.

Nothing good would come of him staring at her any longer. Maybe at some point in the future he would freely walk to her and ask her to be partners again.

Not yet. Not while he remained so weak. Not while he owed that stupid pink haired woman for saving his life.

He walked away, his tail burning with a pale, almost extinguished red. The heat and familiar cackle of the bonfire disappeared in the distance, only the smell of sea breeze and regret willing to walk alongside him.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa was woken up by an aimless beach ball falling on her face, and the day only went downhill from there.

She enjoyed the sunny, somewhat warm morning for a couple hours with Barry before finally heading towards Pastoria. She liked the place, but soon discovered that sand was a piece of shit to get off, especially after you slept on top of it. Part of it had gotten in her hair; she'd need a ton of shampoo to rinse it off.

Their walk west was mostly uneventful, with the exception of the people around them. She could swear some of the rich folks who'd come down from the resort were looking at them funny. She felt their eyes on her back, and as soon as she turned around she found them looking the other direction.

Unfortunately, it only got worse when they reached Pastoria.

The sight of the city was just barely too much to take in, reason why they stood at its entrance for an entire minute. As she lay eyes on the unbridled, wild patch of plants and flora which covered most of the old buildings around her, she couldn't help but think of Eterna. However that wasn't quite right, it didn't fit. She then remembered Floaroma, but that wasn't it either. The first was like a bouquet; a piece of nature carefully built and put together to appease the senses. The second resembled a garden; larger and harder to take care of, but still enclosed in a neat package.

Pastoria was neither of those things. There was no rhyme or reason as to where and how things grew. Bushes, flowers and trees resided anywhere they pleased, with the bare exception of the concrete streets, and even then she spotted some creaks here and there from which wild undergrowth shyly showed its face.

In their way to the Pokemon Center they even passed an old, ruined mansion with a gigantic oak growing in the middle of it. Pieces of ornamented wood and roof tiles were stuck to the branches, so it was like the tree was wearing part of the house as a hat.

"I wanna climb that," Barry said, eyes shimming with excitement. "I'm  _gonna_  climb that."

"Not before I get to take a shower. And eat something." She grabbed him by the collar, smiling. "Come on, we'll have more than enough time to explore later."

She couldn't help admiring the city's unabashed show of life. It didn't seem to care whether what grew in it was beautiful or ugly, useful or an annoyance. It bared the entirety of nature's might, becoming one with it. It was beautiful, in more ways than she could count.

As much as her eyes were enjoying themselves, she couldn't shake off the feeling she'd gotten at the beach. A few people were staring at her, mostly adults or teens around their age with belts full of Pokeballs. She had an inkling why, but decided not to bring it up around Barry.

The Pokemon Center was located past the local harbor, just before the city ended and the forest leading towards the Great Marsh began. It looked worse for wear than the ones she'd visited before, but by no means less cozy. As soon as she stepped foot inside she took a whiff, enjoying the familiar, yet subtle scent of lavenders and old, worn leather. It smelled like home.

Not a lot of time to enjoy it though, as a waving, red ponytail attached to a mountain of a girl rose from one of the nearby tables.

"There you two are!" her voice boomed through the entire lobby. "You sure took your damn time!"

Reiko flashed them a wide grin and raised her hand. It took her until she saw Barry meeting it with his own to realize she wanted a high five. She obliged reluctantly, the clash of her fingers against hers leaving her hand sore.

Percy turned around in his chair, eyes as sharp and droopy as ever, and lazily waved with his free hand.

"I'm glad you made it here okay," he said.

"Glad to see you, fancy boy," she replied, rubbing her aching palm. "You too, Reiko."

"It's so nice to see you!" Barry nodded, shoulders squared.

"Same here. We saw what happened in Veilstone." For a moment Reiko's smile wavered, though she recovered pretty quick. "Anyway, a promise is a promise. How do you two feel about pizza right now?"

Barry agreed immediately, of course. Inyssa opened her mouth to protest, until she felt the low rumble coming from the pit of her stomach. She hadn't eaten anything but marshmallows in almost an entire day.

"Sounds wonderful," she said, trying to imbue her voice with levity. "I want pepperoni."

 

* * *

 

 

As far as pizza went, the one Barry took a bite of was pretty good. Then again in his entire life he'd never eaten any that he could consider bad, not even those with pineapple in it. Pizzas were like people; all beautiful and incredible in their own ways.

"Barry for the love of…" Niss shivered, her eyes wetting. "Agh! You got some of your pizza on mine! This thing is burning my tongue!"

"You agreed to split the flavors in half," he shrugged, still chewing. "Learn to live with the consequences."

She shot him a murderous look and cut with the knife the part of her slice covered with his toppings. In front of them Reiko and Percy exchanged a quizzing look, before keeping their laughter to themselves.

"What's wrong? Sensitive girl can't take spices?" Reiko teased. "You're a true Sinnohan, alright."

"Hey at least I don't put fish in my goddamn pizza, you heretic!"

Reiko almost looked offended, "Oh please, Sardines and cheese go together better than anything your inferior culinary culture could ever hope to create."

The discussion continued for a few minutes, and Barry could see that Niss was clearly enjoying herself, even if her eyebrows were knitted the entire time. Percy rolled his eyes, but he also occasionally had to press his palm against his mouth to repress laughter. There was a light, pleasing levity floating around the table, one which he'd sorely missed.

At least if it weren't for the people watching them. He was sure Niss had noticed as well, but he felt multiple pairs of eyes on his back. Heavy, judging eyes which made him more nervous than he'd like to admit. With his free hand he quickly tapped at the fabric of his jeans, fingers frantically hitting his leg. The usual shivers came back, making him wish he could be outside so he could stretch or run or find any way to get rid of the anxiousness covering his body like a swarm of ants.

"So… did you beat this city's Gym already?" he asked, trying to get his mind off the subject.

Percy answered, since Reiko was too busy chomping on her fourth slice of pizza, "I've lost twice against him."

"I won my first time!" Reiko declared proudly. "He was tough as all hell, but nothing my Gamatetsu and Denki couldn't handle."

He remembered the name of her Venusaur, but wasn't familiar with the second. Still, judging by the name and the fact the town's Gym was water type he figured it had to be some kind of electric Pokemon.

"Barry and I are gonna knock him out of the park, just you wait," Niss elbowed him, smiling. "We'll kick his Pokemon's asses so hard we'll send them back to the ocean."

The memories of last night came to mind, especially Niss' confession about her own gloating. He had to contain a laugh at that.

"Sure we will," he nodded, putting a hand on her shoulder. "That guy's not gonna know what hit him."

The two older trainers exchanged a second, much less subtle look.

"You don't know who the Leader is, do you?" Reiko smiled wickedly. "You wouldn't be so confident if you did."

Niss shrugged, "I'll find out when I go challenge him."

"That's the spirit!" Reiko declared, hitting the table with one fist and almost toppling the plates to the ground. "So, what about you two!? Did you defeat Maylene? She took me four tries when I fought her, and for Percy it was six."

The mood dropped like a boulder in the middle of the air, and judging by Niss' expression it might as well have fallen on top of her head. Her eyes darkened, fingers closing strongly against the fork.

"She was hurt during the Galactic attack," she said, voice plain. "So we had to skip her. We'll fight her after Sunnyshore's Leader."

Reiko's cheery expression turned to one of embarrassment, "Ah… sorry."

"It's okay."

The tapping of Barry's fingers became more incessant. He opened his mouth to speak.

"Yeah… about that. Uh… Niss said you wanted to talk to us about that? Something about… Mars."

The name itself made Niss' fingers curl inwards until she was all but crushing the fork in her hands. Her face didn't reflect this, however, and he hoped she wasn't as angry as he believed her to be.

"It was you specifically, I think," she said to Reiko. "You know something about her?"

Percy shifted on his seat, both hands closing around his glass of sparkling water. For the first time Reiko looked down, and he noticed an unmistakable tinge of anger shining behind her eyes. He'd seen that plenty of times on Niss, and for a moment he could almost swear he physically felt it, like a gust of wind hitting him in the face.

"I… don't think it's safe to discuss it here," she stuttered. "You have a few fans, if you haven't noticed."

They didn't need to turn around to know what she meant, the incessant glare of everyone in the room still a weight on their shoulders.

"I have to admit, this isn't as cool as I imagined," Niss said, resting her cheek on one hand. "I'd even prefer them asking for autographs instead of just staring like creeps."

"They're scared," Percy said.

"Yeah, you wouldn't believe all the stupid rumors running around," Reiko added. "My favorite is the one I heard where you're both siblings who were raised by legendary Pokemon after your parents abandoned you in the forest."

Niss raised an eyebrow, letting out a sound that might've been an incredulous laugh, "At least they're not lacking in imagination. And besides, better to be feared than not recognized at all."

"We could tell people the truth," Barry offered. "That way they won't be scared of us and they might wanna be friends!"

A swat of the hand from his friend and his idea was discarded like an annoying fly.

"Let them believe what they want," she said. "If all they do is jump to conclusions about us then they're not worth the time to talk to."

And with that the matter was settled, about as abruptly as things got wrapped up when it was up to Niss. He knew the face she was making; trying to discuss further would be completely pointless. Fortunately Percy seemed to pick up on this, as he changed the subject.

"We have some errands to take care of in a few minutes. You should use that opportunity to challenge a few trainers in the Gym," he said, setting his fork on the table. "There will be plenty of time to discuss this matter later."

Reiko nodded, "There's a big patch of tall grass just south of the Great Marsh that's pretty hidden. We can meet there and talk while we train our Pokemon."

They registered the spot on the map inside their Pokétch, though Niss refused to show them hers for obvious reasons, and agreed to meet there in two hours. Each finished their respective meal and left the money on the table, the two groups heading their separate directions.

 

* * *

 

 

Barry looked down at the Pokeballs on his belt, uneasiness setting over him. Either that or it was the oppressing humidity of the town.

He'd confirmed it was safe for a newborn Togepi to be inside a Pokeball, so now he had five official Pokemon. That was great and all, but it didn't change the fact  Auri would not be fighting any time soon, at least not until he figured out a way for her to catch up to the rest of his team. It would take time, tears and a staggering amount of effort, but he was still somewhat excited for it.

Wrathia was still a wildcard, too. Her attitude toward him changing so violently was a good sign, but that wouldn't make up for the lack of experience they had together. He didn't even know which were her strong points during combat, whether she preferred a hasty, offensive approach or a careful, defensive one. There was so much he would have to learn about her… it was exciting, and overwhelming.

These and a hundred more scattered thoughts ran through his mind as he and Niss made their way to the Gym. It was too much to focus on, too much for him to be able to formulate a good plan. He felt as lost as ever, as evidenced by the way his breathing had gotten shallower, and his fingers curled and uncurled unconsciously, as they tended to do when he was nervous.

Niss tugging at his sleeve brought him back to reality.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay," she smiled, reading him like an open book. "We'll only fight the Leader's students, so it'll be a good chance to experiment. Breathe slowly and try to clear your mind, alright?"

"Yeah…"

He felt her worried eyes on him as relentless as ever. He was happy  his friend cared so much about his wellbeing, but sometimes he wished she would just let him sulk a bit in peace. Not that he'd say that out loud.

"So…" he swallowed, thinking of a way to change the subject. "Did you talk to Lucas? I thought he was gonna be in the Pokemon Center today."

Niss shot him a look of  _I'll play along but I'll make sure you're happy later._

"He said he had a meeting with someone," she shrugged. "Kid apologized like ten times. He'll be back later in the afternoon, so we'll probably have dinner with him."

He nodded slowly, trying to pay attention to her words. Who could Lucas have a meeting with? Professor Rowan? Or maybe…

"I bet you an entire pint of ice cream that he has a date," he said.

Niss raised an eyebrow, forming a sly smile, "Deal. I'll be damned if that nerd gets with someone before I do." She extended her arm towards him, and they shook on it.

The Gym stood as west as Pastoria went, just before the poorly defined edges of the city ended against the vine filled Marsh ahead. It was a tall, almost circular building covered mostly in windows, both at the sides and on the expansive roof. The walls were painted with a pale blue, and above the doors hung a giant version of what they were after. A flat, silver disk with a sapphire circle below and a platinum set of spikes growing upwards: The Fen Badge.

"Who do you think will be the Gym Leader?" he asked, his feet tapping the ground unconsciously.

"Well, judging by what we've seen so far I'd wager it's someone completely crazy," she smiled. "But more specifically… maybe a handsome, spry young swimmer?"

They stood in front of the door for a few moments before taking a step forward at the same time. Niss' hand reached for the handle, nervousness clear in her expression.

"Here goes nothing."

 

* * *

 

 

Lucas realized he might have to take heart medication after his meeting.

He simply waited as Saturn, sitting across him on the café's table, read through his papers and occasionally bit the cap of the pen he moved through his fingers. Not that he was paying any attention to his face or anything.

Still, he could barely stand it as anxiety crawled through the inside of his skin, making it almost impossible for him to stay still. To counteract this he'd started tapping his foot against the ground, though at this point he feared he might cause an earthquake by how fast he was doing it.

Finally Saturn put the papers down and looked up at him. Lucas' heart jumped to his throat.

"This is…" he said, lips curling into a smile. "Lucas, this is incredible!"

He leaned back into his chair, not quite processing what he'd just heard, "Y-you mean it?"

"Yes! This is… are you sure this is your first research attempt? This is amazingly well written!" He tapped the bundle of paper with the back of his palm. "I have trouble believing you really are only eighteen, considering what I just read."

He looked down, clasping his hands together in excitement, "Well… you're not much older than me, and you're already a genius."

"I guess that's fair," Saturn smiled. "Still, I'm impressed. If you weren't working for Professor Rowan I would plea my boss to let me hire you as my assistant." There was a small pause, where he leaned forward a bit, raising an eyebrow. "Well… that's up to you, still. Are you sure you're not interested in my offer?"

Saturn's proposal… the moment he'd heard it he could hardly believe it. To think someone as amazing as him would invite him to work for his company; as an actual scientist assistant no less. It was the chance of a lifetime; a doorway to learn more than he would ever be able to do by going to any university or staying where he was.

And still…

"T-thank you," he bowed his head slightly. "But… Professor Rowan has done so, so much for me, and I can't bring myself to abandon him. I want to complete this research under his name, and I want him to be proud of me for it," he smiled to himself, feeling Butterfrees flooding his stomach. "Maybe in the future I can make a name for myself; but right now I'm Rowan's assistant and I need to play the part."

There was a shade of disappointment across Saturn's face, but it was mostly overshadowed by his warm smile.

"Well, that's a very noble goal to aspire to. I won't try to interfere anymore. Though we could do some conjoined work at some point."

"Oh! You mean scientific collaboration? The professor told me he worked with Oak a few years back!"

"Yes, and that's considered the highest honor a scientist can get. That's why people like us need to work together; so that someday we might surpass those at the top." He raised one hand and turned it into a fist, still smiling. "I can see that you have the right kind of ambition. You're not doing this for money or fame; all you want is to work for the good of others."

Lucas was somewhat taken aback by Saturn's description. A terrible thought crept through the dark parts of his mind, setting above him like an unmovable weight. Was he… was he being sarcastic? He shuddered at the possibility; if so then he'd be in the same spot as back then, when…

He gulped, and looked down at the table, "You're praising me too much. I'm nowhere near as selfless as you say."

"Ah… sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable," Saturn's lips went thin, his shoulders dropping slightly. "But, if you don't mind me asking, why do you think that?"

"Well…" He started twiddling with his thumbs. "I like learning a lot, and I hope that someday my work can help others. But I also like the idea of people knowing who I am and… liking me, for it." His voice wavered wildly as his cheeks turned a pale reddish. "To hear my name next to the best of the best, to be respected and looked up to by others who want to go through the same path… that's my dream, I guess"

Saturn stood still for a few moments, and all of Lucas' previous confidence evaporated in a wisp. He became painfully aware of how loud he'd just been, and cursed his stupid enthusiasm. Did his words put him off? Was he disappointed by what he'd just said? The mere possibility made his legs shake like they were made of jello.

Maybe if he'd tried to lie… but no, that wouldn't have been right. The truth was as solid and hot inside his chest as a molten rock; it had been that way ever since he was little. His ambitions were largely selfish and self serving, and he'd only been able to get so far because he'd been blessed with Rowan's help. If he'd tried to succeed alone…

_You're just gonna keep being a nuisance if you stay like this forever._

The sudden and familiar voice resurged from the depths of his mind, bringing back those memories he'd tried his best to keep locked. He didn't realize, but his fingers were grabbing the fabric of his jacket so strongly the tips had gone pale. His eyes began to sting, and he tried his best to contain how pathetic he knew himself to be.

He should just apologize to Saturn for wasting his time, he thought as the silence formed the shape of a noose around his neck. He was about to when he heard him speak.

The young man leaned back into his chair and crossed his arms. His voice came out a lot mellower than before, though still as warm, "Interesting. You're about as rare a specimen as I've come across yet," he let out a snort, as if he'd just told a joke only he could understand. "People who want to be famous only for the benefits or to stroke their ego are a dime a dozen. But to have that desire burn so strongly inside you and still have it tamed under your duty as a scientist… that's very impressive."

Lucas' reaction made him look like a Poochyena whom someone had dumped a bucket of water on. He unconsciously leaned back and tried to reply, though his voice didn't come out the first two times.

"R-really?"

Saturn raised his head and nodded, eyes bright, "Yes, absolutely. I've seen too many who were consumed by their own ambitions, but you are not like them. The kind of world me and my associates are trying to create... you would fit right in, Lucas."

"W-wh..." The boy's lower lip quivered, and the sting behind his eyes turned almost unbearable. "Saturn…"

The man's eyes found his, and he suddenly felt without breath. His words descended on him like a blessing; the ones he'd been wanting to hear his entire life:

"I have absolutely no doubts that you can achieve your dreams. I believe in you."

He knew he shouldn't have reacted to his words in the way he did. He knew that starting to tear up in front of someone who he'd just met a few days ago would have been stupid and weird and probably make him look like a crybaby. He knew that he was pathetic and a coward, and yet…

He unconsciously tried to shrink in place, lowering his head. He tried his best to contain the sobs escaping him; but there was no doubt Saturn could hear them.

Professor Rowan had always been kind and supportive toward Lucas, but he was a man of few words. Both shy and stern; he'd never fully vocalized just how much he believed in his student, and the boy had taken that to mean that he wasn't good enough. And even back when he lived with his brother, not once had he ever heard a real word of encouragement coming out of his mouth.

All and all, it was the first time in years anyone had outwardly expressed their belief in him.

"Woah!" Saturn raised his palms, eyes open wide. "Lucas, are you okay!? I'm sorry if what I said upset you, I was just…"

A weak laugh coming from the young boy interrupted him.

"It's… it's okay." He tried his best to calm himself, even if his voice and hands still shook violently. "I'm sorry, I just… it's been a long time since anyone… I'm sorry."

He didn't fail to notice the reflection of pity on Saturn's expression, though he didn't mind as much since it was softened by the dorky way in which he looked worried. He seemed unsure whether to extend a hand forward and pat him on the shoulder or to just sit there.

"Hey, we all get emotional sometimes," he raised his hands as he shrugged, awkwardly. "Again, sorry if… uh, anyway. I think it'd be a good time to ask for desserts!" He raised his finger, with a lopsided smile. "They make a chocolate sundae here I absolutely need to show you. I'm sure that will improve your mood."

As Lucas cleaned his cheeks with the back of his sleeve, cheeks flushing from embarrassment, he couldn't help but smile at the awkward man sitting next to him.

 _I really am blessed_ , he thought to himself.  _Rowan, Niss and Barry, Saturn… I almost feel like I'm cheating. Like I don't deserve to know them._

He clenched his fists, forcing himself to look up with a determined look. Even if he didn't deserve them, he would become someone who did. That's the least he owed them for all they'd done for him.

"Thank you so much," he told Saturn, nodding. "And yes, that sounds delicious."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa was un-pleasantly surprised to discover that the Leader's students were a lot tougher than she expected.

At least an hour had passed, and she'd only been able to defeat three of them. Steven and Kuro had fallen in the two last fights respectively, and she was now stuck with only Bret, since Shadi hadn't recovered from her wounds yet.

She winced as her last Pokemon was thrown backwards by the opposing Buizel's Aqua Jet, almost falling to the water which made up seventy percent of the arena. Each trainer stood at opposite sides of a small pool, with plastic platforms littered all over as to give fire, ground and rock types a chance were she to use one.

But she wasn't, and that was the problem. By all means Bret should've obliterated any water type he encountered, but in this specific scenario he was being outmatched. He was by far the slowest Pokemon in her team, and with no ground for him to press his hand against and summon vines, he didn't count with any way to counter the Buizel's overwhelming speed. Each torrent of petals he threw at him was either dodged effortlessly or rendered useless by his opponent simply jumping into the pool.

In a strange way, she couldn't help but be relieved. Having skipped the fight against Maylene, it had been a long time since she'd gotten an actual, honest challenge from anyone. It excited her, it put her right in her element. As messy as confusing as her life could get, a Pokemon fight was something she could actively solve, and she was grateful for that.

"Finish him off! Aqua Tail!"

She threw her hand forward, a plan forming on her mind, "Bret, surround yourself with Stun Spore!"

Raising himself to his feet, the Roselia extended both rose covered hands to the side. A cloud of musky, yellow dust was expelled from every one of his petals, spiraling around him like armor. Buizel saw this, only inches from his opponent, and with the power gathered into his tails he whipped at the air in front of him. A mighty gust of wind parted the water in half, dispelling the spores completely.

"W-what!?" the trainer in front of her yelled, eyes wide open. "He's gone!"

Inyssa smiled, her victory assured.

"Bret, Grass Knot!"

Dozens of vines broke through the surface of the water. Buizel tried his best to dodge, but having used his last attack in such a non orthodox manner had left him without any momentum in the middle of the air; his speed completely nullified. They slithered their way through his body, binding him completely and leaving him suspended above the water.

"Try to break out with Sonic Boom!"

"Magical Leaf!"

Tail covered in white energy, Buizel tried desperately to cut the vines binding him to no avail. From the bottom of the pool a torrent of glowing, sharp petals pelted his body relentlessly, until he was no longer able to stay conscious.

She let out a long sigh of relief. Grabbing Bret's Pokeball, she returned him to it from the bottom of the pool, and whispered congratulations into it. Still, her win had been too close for her liking. A lot of training would have to be done before she would feel comfortable challenging the Gym leader.

Clapping brought her back to reality. The trainer she'd just fought approached her with a lopsided smile on her face. She was a tall, scrawny girl wearing a swimsuit and a blue, wrestling mask modeled after a Piplup.

"That was one hell of a battle," she spoke with a booming voice, hands on her hips. "Though I'm afraid not good enough to get past our leader."

She struggled to form a polite smile, "Yeah, I know. Hey, what's with the masks, anyway?"

The girl smiled widely, as if she'd been expecting the question. Without prompt she lowered her knees and turned to the side, flexing both her arms, "Well why else!? This is the Gym of the greatest wrestler ever to have graced Sinnoh! We, his apprentices, can't be seen around without a mask of our own! That would bring nothing but disgrace to this distinguished establishment!"

At any other time, Inyssa might've stared in confusion at the girl's pose, or perhaps rolled her eyes at such a hammy performance. But now all she could do was let out a gasp of surprise.

"W-wait!" She gulped, eyes wide open. "The greatest wrestler… and this is a water type Gym. Don't tell me…!"

"Indeed…" The girl crossed her arms proudly. "You are before the best student of none other than the legendary Crasher Wake, master of the ocean's wrath!"

Inyssa was not proud of the sound which came out of her mouth, but at that moment she didn't care one bit. The name itself made her skin shiver, and for the first time in her life she felt like she imagined Barry did all the time.

"I love Crasher Wake!" She threw her arms to the side, smiling so widely her cheeks hurt. "Oh my god… oh my god I'm gonna have to fight Crasher Wake…" A strange mix of fear and anticipation filled her chest. "Oh my god I need to train so much more than I thought."

The girl nodded knowingly, "You better not come at our boss without making sure you're ready!"

A violent shiver hit her, the mere thought of having to face against her favorite celebrity of all time almost too much for her to handle. An image came to mind; her, Shadi and Barry sitting in her house's oversized couch as they watched the man in television, wrestling his way through every opponent which came to him. She'd never cheered harder in her life.

_Barry…_

She turned to his friend, excited to see his reaction to the news. Unfortunately what she saw wiped the smile off her face; Barry's Kadabra had just received a devastating attack from the opposing Shellos. She saw her friend's face covered in shadows as he returned his last Pokemon, hands shaking.

The girl she'd just fought might've been a bit offended at being left there without even a goodbye, but Inyssa couldn't worry about that at the moment. She walked to him and put a hand on his shoulder, in the most reassuring way she could.

"Hey… it's gonna be okay," she assured him. "You got through three other trainers before; I'm sure Kitsune was really tired."

Barry shook his head, too weakly for her liking, "It's… it's not that. Kitsune was fine, I just…" he looked as his palm, eyes droopy. "I froze. That thing was beating us and I couldn't think my way out. "

The sheer sadness in his voice made her want to walk to the trainer he'd just faced and punch them in the face. She instead chose to grab him by the arm as she walked towards the exit.

"Nothing we can't fix with some training," she said. "Come on, let's get our Pokemon patched up before we go to that spot Reiko and Percy said. You'll feel much better after that."

"Yeah… I guess."

"I guarantee it," she tried her best to smile cheerfully. "I also have some news that will knock your socks off."

 

* * *

 

 

In the end, the reveal of the Gym Leader's identity did bring Barry back to his usual bubbly self, and then some. There was no way to explain how relieved that made Inyssa; she really wasn't sure how good she was at cheering up her friend.

In any case, she knew it was temporary. Whatever mental block Barry was struggling against in battle, it was something she could only marginally help with. He would eventually have to solve it by himself.

As soon as their Pokemon were healed they headed to the patch saved in their map. It was a small clearance hidden between two thick walls of robust trees, filled to the brim with tall grass and a myriad of other bushes and colorful plants, most of which she'd never seen before.

She instructed Bret to use Sweet Scent in the direction of the wind, and soon enough the place was swarming with horde after horde of wild Pokemon. Wooper, Bibarel, Tangela and Noctowl fell on them from every direction. Luckily the combined might of their team was too much for them to handle, and soon they started dropping like flies.

After a few minutes of training they heard steps behind them, and through two thick bushes appeared Reiko and Percy. For the first time since the trial at the Lost Tower, the redhead didn't look cheery.

"Well… isn't this a sight for sore eyes," she said, forcing herself to smile. "Looks like you're getting your time's worth with these wild Pokemon."

"How did the Gym go?" Percy asked.

She explained their little venture, focusing mostly on the Gym Leader's revealed identity and omitting to mention Barry's defeat. Reiko seemed to regain some of the color in her face as she heard her tale.

"You're both fans of Crasher Wake? Well, let there be known you do have some taste after all," she smiled. "So, mind if we join the training?"

She didn't wait for a response before letting out three Pokemon. The first two she'd seen already; Stain the Scyther and Nakuru the Golduck. The third however, was completely new. A chubby, bipedal rodent with orange fur covering most of its body and two circular marks on its cheeks. A long tail sprout from its back, ending in the shape of a lightning bolt.

Inyssa took out her Pokédex almost reflexively.

_Raichu: The Orange Blur Pokemon - Electric Type. While mostly friendly and harmless, it can become aggressive if the pouches on its cheeks are too full of electricity. To prevent this, it grounds itself with its tail and discharges all its energy at once. Scorched patches of earth will be found near its nest._

"So that's how you got past Crasher Wake," she said.

Reiko nodded proudly, "Denki here is not someone you wanna mess with."

As if to completely counter his trainer's words, the Raichu approached her and rubbed his cheek on her leg, all the while smiling. She blushed.

"A-anyway…" she cleared her throat. "We should probably get started."

Inyssa stared her down, "And you're gonna tell us what you wanted to tell us now?"

"Yeah. Here, let's find a better spot while our Pokemon fight."

 

* * *

 

 

"And you're absolutely sure she was doing that with a Ditto."

Barry had never seen Reiko so shaken, even if the redhead tried her best to hide it. Her arms were crossed tightly, and her feet tapped the ground incessantly. Behind her Percy stared, worry clear in his face.

"I saw it myself," Niss said. "It's definitely a Ditto."

Reiko bit her thumb, eyes focused on the ground. She seemed to be somewhat lost in thought.

"Did she say anything about it? Like…" she moved her hand in a circle, biting her lip. "Where she got it or anything like that?"

Barry stepped in, "Well, at least from what I saw it looked like it was melted into her body. "

"Back in Veilstone she mentioned something about it," Niss explained. "I think she was experimented on by a guy named Charon."

All color left Reiko's face. She took a sudden step back and almost tripped on an overgrown root, before Percy managed to catch her. Her fingers ran through her hair, as something between a laugh and a sound of incredulousness came out of her mouth.

"I-I knew it!" Barry felt the sheer relief and anger through her voice. "I fucking knew it! I told you he was hiding here in Sinnoh!" she told Percy, fingers curling into fists.

He noticed Niss wincing, as an almost imperceptible spasm hit her right hand. She looked down at her wrist and furrowed her brow, shaking her head slightly. This caught Percy's attention, though he didn't get much time to wonder what had happened as Barry spoke up.

"You know that guy?"

Reiko closed her eyes for a moment, breathing in and out slowly. Her lower lip was shaking.

"It's… it's a long story," she said, pale as paper.

"Really?" Niss said. "You're gonna pull that shit on us? Why do you think we cleared our schedule for today?"

Even though she probably meant her words to be sarcastic, Barry noticed the tinge of impatience in her voice, and he agreed with her sentiment. If they knew anything about Team Galactic which could help them take them down, they had to know.

"Fine, but you better listen carefully, because I'm not telling this twice." She unconsciously grabbed her boyfriend's hand, as if wanting to extract strength from it. "So… I mentioned before that my mom worked for Silph Co., right?"

They nodded in unison, the story about how she'd met Red still fresh in their memory.

"Well, I don't know if you knew this, but back in the last two years of the war the company changed a lot," she started speaking, voice slow and taciturn. "The government turned it into a base of operations; information, communication and all that junk. It became our main scientific branch, which is why Saffron was so targeted by Sinnoh's forces."

Barry decided to ignore the latent, burning poison behind her words, and the way her face twisted into pure rage as he said those last words. Next to him Niss frowned, though thankfully she didn't say anything.

"But… some people didn't think having all our brains working on that would get us anywhere. That's why a second, smaller branch was created by a group of scientists, who decided to set their base on the old facilities in Cinnabar Island. They said they could come up with a magic bullet to end the war; a secret weapon or something."

Cinnabar Island… Barry could swear he'd heard something about the place related to the war.

Reiko took a deep breath before continuing, "They tried really hard to convince Professor Oak to join their team, though he obviously refused, being a pacifist and the leader of the anti-war movement. So in the end they were a small group of three scientists, and a few assistants here and there. My…" she swallowed. "My… dad was one of those assistants."

He didn't like the wave of anguish that the girl expelled as she said that, her expression turning grim. Barry's eyes flashed gold for a moment as the feeling hit him.

"They were doing something.. dangerous. By some wild miracle one of the lead scientists, Doctor Fuji, had a small DNA sample of the mirage Pokemon; Mew. I'm… guessing you're familiar with it."

Barry gulped, feeling like someone had run electricity through his stomach, "I… I mean, yeah?"

"We are indeed familiar with the most known legendary Pokemon of all time, yes." Niss said, voice dripping with sarcasm.

"R-right, stupid question." Reiko let out a weak laugh. Behind her Percy stood still and silent. "Anyway, their plan was to use the strands of Mew's hair to clone it, or at least clone something just as powerful at it. The folks in Johto weren't very happy with it since they were so spiritual and junk, but in the end they agreed to keep it a secret. The scientists worked at it for almost an entire year, and then…" She closed and opened her hands unconsciously. "Well, something happened. My dad wouldn't tell us what it was, no matter how much me and mom asked, and I figured that someone above him forbid him from saying anything. After that rumors started circulating, especially from the people of Cinnabar. They said they'd heard a huge explosion near the lab, and then they saw a… thing, flying through the roof and into the sky.

"My guess is that they did make a clone, though one too strong for them to control. Not that it matters; after the incident the whole project was cancelled and the three leaders of it lost their scientific privileges. They each went their own way, and less than two years later the war ended for good."

Niss crossed her arms, "I'm guessing that one of those scientists was Charon, though I still don't know what this has to do with Mars or that weird Ditto."

"I was getting to that, half pint," Reiko said, trying to suppress a smile. "Turns out, all the work and research they'd done wasn't exactly in vain. See, they went through a lot of clone prototypes before finally getting it right. These prototypes were really small and pretty much useless as weapons, but they shared something in common with Mew: The ability to transform into any Pokemon they came across."

"W-wait!" Barry asked, eyes going wide. "You mean Ditto?"

Niss gently hit his side with her elbow, "Who else? They originated in Kanto due to mysterious experiments," she said. "I guess now we know what those experiments were."

He blushed, completely unaware of that particular tidbit. It had probably been covered during one of their many classes in which he wasn't able to pay any attention.

Reiko nodded, "The initial plan was to get rid of them, though after a lot of convincing from Professor Oak they were allowed to be released into the wild, and from then they spread everywhere. Well… most of them were released.

"There was one Ditto which was… different, from the others. It'd been their last prototype before the incident that ruined the whole project. Looks like not only was it a lot stronger, but it also wasn't limited to imitate only Pokemon. It could turn into anything; weapons, appliances, even people."

Another wave of unbridled surprise, with a hint of anger, coming from Niss. He could swear he saw part of her hair stand up straight.

"They weren't able to use it as a weapon in the war, since it ended before they could figure out a way to implement its abilities. Still, even after the peace treaties were made the Association's scientists kept studying the thing, just in case. Doctor Fuji and Blaine had no problem with it, but Charon refused. For years he did all he could to convince them to return the Ditto to him. Eventually they discovered several acts of malfeasance attributed to him, and he was declared a war criminal. He was to be judged in front of a tribunal, until…"

Reiko's voice lost strength, and he could see her violently struggling to keep appearances. She lowered her head and tried to speak, tone brittle and weak.

"It… it happened a few days before the trial. I'm sure you saw it in the news, considering…" she attempted to smile, though it only formed halfway.

"Around that time…" Niss whispered, arching her brow. "That's when Cinnabar's volcano erupted, wasn't it?"

"Y-yeah. I was in Saffron when it happened. We saw on TV how all the lava and rockslides just… swallowed the entire island. Most people got out thanks to Blaine and his Pokemon; they went to Vermillion in the rescue boats."

Barry didn't like one bit her use of the word  _most_ , and suddenly dreaded hearing any more of her story. Judging by the look on her face, Niss agreed.

"M-my parents were divorced at the time, which is why I stayed with my mom. My dad and my… my little brother…"

Percy got closer and gently pushed his shoulder against hers, his fingers grazing her free hand. Reiko sniffled and rubbed her eye with the back of her palm.

Even if Barry knew what to say, he wasn't sure he'd be able to get it out. He could tell it was still a fresh and powerful memory in Reiko's mind, even if so much time had gone by since then. For the first time in ages he didn't notice the change in his eyes.

"Anyway," Reiko cleared her throat. "Eventually they found the bodies of almost everyone who wasn't in the rescue boats. The only two missing were Charon and the Ditto stored in Cinnabar Mansion. No matter how much they looked they couldn't find trace of either of them."

"Is that why you came here?" Barry asked, voice as pale as his skin. "To Sinnoh, I mean."

"Well… A couple days before the trial he was visited by a strange man, it seems. He had light blue hair and his skin was pale and sickly looking, like that of the people here. No one knows what he talked to Charon about, but it happened just before the volcano erupted." She raised one of her hands, curled into a fist, and stared at it. "I had other reasons of course, but I knew that my best chance to find him would be here in Sinnoh."

It happened again; Niss flinched and threw her arm backwards, letting out a small gasp of pain. He could almost feel the electricity buzzing out of her Pokétch, and he was glad he wasn't able to see Hao's face. To think he'd find two people who were after the same crazy scientist in such a short time…

"Hold on." Niss raised her hand slightly, a quizzical look on her face. "Do you have any proof that this weird guy was from here other than from how he looked like?"

A scowl formed between Reiko's eyebrows, as if she weren't sure whether to be angry at her words or not.

"That doesn't matter, I was right," she said firmly. "You just told me that Charon is here, working with Team Galactic."

"He is right now, but the eruption in Cinnabar happened years ago," Niss replied in a heated tone. "I believe you in that he escaped and stole that Ditto, but that doesn't mean he immediately came to Sinnoh and started working for Team Galactic."

Reiko shrugged, "Do you have a better explanation, half pint?"

This time it was clear the nickname wasn't thrown around in an endearing way. Niss closed her hands into fists, and Barry didn't have time to stop her before she replied.

"I'm just saying that the last part of your story doesn't make much sense, you're jumping to conclusions too much."

Barry immediately noticed the change in atmosphere, not to mention the way Reiko's eyelid twitched ever so slightly, and decided to step in, "H-hey I don't think that was the point of what she was saying, we should go back to talking about…"

Reiko spoke, ignoring him, "Are you really that mindlessly patriotic that you can't bear the thought that someone from Sinnoh was behind what happened to our island?"

In a hurry Percy grabbed Reiko's arm, eyebrows knit together, "Okay, that's enough. This isn't time to fight."

"That's not what I'm saying at all!" Niss yelled, gritting her teeth. "The most logical explanation is that Charon was there when the eruption happened and took advantage of it to steal Ditto and escape. How the hell could he even manage to cause something like that, even with outside help? You're just sticking to whatever theory makes hating us easier!"

Reiko chortled, an incredulous look on her face, "Oh trust me, I don't need to go around grasping at straws to find a reason to be bitter. Your region has already given me a lot of excuses to fucking hate it."

"Says someone from Kanto," Niss spat back, voice full of poison. "Don't act like you're all a bunch of angels. Remember the invasion on Fuchsia City, how they bombed our recon troops with poison gas? Or how about the fact that you still have a war criminal like Surge as a fucking Gym Leader?"

"Is this really the game you wanna play!?" The ground felt like it shook as Reiko took a step forward, expression darkened. "The Lavender invasion! The Sevii Islands bombings! The strike against Viridian that ended the war! Thousands dead in every one of those incidents!"

Her screams rang through the air all around them, catching the attention of their Pokemon, who turned around towards them. A thick, oppressive silence fell before Niss could respond.

"You were the ones who pulled the trigger first," she growled. "Kanto started the war; don't ever forget that."

Barry put an arm between them before things could escalate further, shooting an irritated look at Niss.

"Alright, let's all calm down!" He tried his best to imbue his voice with authority. "We can all agree that what happened was really bad, and no one here is at fault for it, okay?"

Reiko laughed, which wasn't at all what he was expecting, "Oh, I'm sure you'd love to put all this under the rug, Barry. Don't think I don't know who your parents are. Tower Tycoon Palmer and Sarah Paladino, right?" A smile full of wrath formed on her face, and he felt compelled to step back. "Say, how much would you say they enjoyed carving a bloody crest through my homeland? Because considering what they've done I'd say they got a pretty big kick out of it."

"Reiko!" Percy yelled, closing his fingers around her arm, scowling.

Barry's arms dropped to the side, and he was pretty sure a boulder had materialized inside his stomach considering how those words felt. He opened his mouth to refute her, to say anything, but before he could Niss pushed him to the side.

"Leave him out of this!" As small as she was compared to the mountain that was Reiko, she still looked just as intimidating. "Talk to him like that again and I'll knock your teeth out!"

He flinched a few inches back, "N-Niss!"

There was a short moment, a couple seconds or so, where it seemed to dawn on the two girls what they'd just said. A short moment where it almost looked like they were able to see through each other's anger, were able to understand the reason for the other's pain. It was short lived, however, as those seconds passed and the stalwart pride inside them burned that understanding to cinders.

Niss looked down, still simmering like a furnace from his perspective. Her hand moved swiftly, grabbing him by the wrist a bit more strongly than he would've liked.

He was painfully aware of all their Pokemon staring at them inquisitively.

"We're going now," she stated, trying to no avail to erase emotion from her voice. "I knew I shouldn't have wasted my time on you two."

The sheer poison behind her tone made Reiko wince. She actually looked hurt, as if her anger had been mitigated by Niss, at least for a moment. She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped herself.

Barry felt himself being dragged towards the way they came from, as their Pokemon followed behind with clear looks of confusion. He knew he should've told her something, told her they could resolve the situation without having to go away or write them off entirely.

_Yeah, like you'd be able to change her mind. Good one._

His shoulders dropped, shame creeping up through his body. No choice but to give up; not that he'd be able to change anything by himself.

He let himself be dragged by Niss, a million unsaid words inside him.


	35. The Youngest Sibling

 

"Hi! You're Inyssa, right? Do you mind if I ask you something?"

"I do. Leave me alone."

Such exchanges made up about ninety percent of the interactions she had with the trainers of Pastoria during the following days. It was hard deciding who was more annoying; those who stared at them from afar or the ones who were bold enough to approach and talk to them. She respected the latter a bit more, but also wanted to deck them in the face so it kinda cancelled out.

In any other scenario she might've found the whole thing flattering and somewhat exciting. However, between her still simmering anger from the exchange with Reiko and the fact that more and more stupid rumors started coming out in response to her antisocial attitude, she wasn't exactly in the mood to be dealing with people.

The exception was Barry, who god bless him did his best to counteract the impact her shitty attitude was having on their image as trainers. He tried to maintain a cheerful and carefree attitude with all the people who approached him; but still she could see that he wasn't used to being so sociable.

To make it up to him she did all she could to help him with his training while she did hers. Their schedule wasn't as harsh as the one they'd followed in Eterna, but the tasks they prepared for their Pokemon were complex. Inyssa's were getting closer to finally getting past the threshold of Maylene's training, while Barry was having a bit of difficulty with his. For starters he kept telling her that he had no idea what the Gym eader had meant when she said he was holding himself back.

Inyssa bit her lip and looked down. She knew exactly that she'd meant, but was a bit scared that her friend would take it the wrong way if she told him bluntly.

"It'll be okay," she said at the end of their training, patting him on the shoulder. "Just… trust your instincts when you fight Crasher Wake and you'll be fine."

_Wow, who taught you how to be supportive, the inside of a fucking fortune cookie?_

They headed back to town once the sun started to go down, frustration and disappointment pestering the air like smoke. They would finally hang out with Lucas in a nearby café, and Inyssa wasn't sure if she was up for it or not. Maybe the sight of that dumb nerd would ease the burning knot inside her stomach; or in the worst case scenario it might be somewhat fun.

After taking a deserved shower and rinsing the dirt and dust off her with her favorite lemon scented soap she headed towards the accorded place with Barry. Even though it was getting dark and the faraway breeze of the sea refreshed them a bit, it was still a tad hotter than she would've liked. Not to mention the humidity, which made her feel like she was breathing water every time she inhaled.

A combination of all those annoyances might explain why she did what she did. After almost half an hour of walking they found the café Lucas mentioned, and just before they went in someone approached her from one of the nearby tables. A short, dark skinned girl, probably one or two years younger than them, with soft droopy eyes. Nervousness was written all over her face.

"Uh… excuse me," she said, looking down at her hands. "Are you Inyssa? I wanted to know if I could…"

It was an exhausting, bursting kind of anger the one which flooded her at that moment. It didn't last long, fading as soon as she opened her mouth and replied.

"Dear god, fuck off!"

She regretted her words as soon as she said them, and the way Barry looked at her didn't exactly help the situation. The girl's eyes shone with what looked like tears, and without saying anything she turned around and ran back towards her table, where two older looking teens sat, frowning.

Inyssa looked at her feet, trying to avoid Barry's judging eyes as much as she could. Just what she needed; another reason to feel like an asshole.

"Let's go inside," was all she said as she opened the door.

As it were, seeing Lucas did cheer her up. Something about the way his round cheeks puffed up as he smiled and his eyes shone with excitement… she simply couldn't be mad at him.

"Well if it isn't the disappearing guy!" Barry put his hands on his hips, trying to sound offended. "Already found better friends than us?"

Panic appeared in the boy's face, "What? No! I was just… I was doing research and had to meet with someone and…"

"He's just messing with you," she smiled, elbowing Barry on the side. "Come on, let's find a table before I fall asleep on my feet."

 

* * *

 

 

They chose one of the tables in the back and close to the windows, as to be out of the view of everyone else. As they exchanged stories of what they'd done in the time they hadn't seen each other the orders came in. Inyssa asked for a slice of velvet cake with a cherry smoothie; Lucas for blueberry muffins with sparkling water and Barry for two slices of lemon pie and a soda. She had no idea how his body could process so much sugar, but she'd given up on understanding the boy's odd metabolism a long time ago.

"Ahh… I'm so glad," Lucas put a hand on his chest once she finished telling her side of the story. "Thank goodness you made it safely out of that. I heard a lot of rumors about what happened, and I got worried."

"Sorry for not telling you before," Barry apologized with a smile. "It… kinda slipped off our mind."

Inyssa nodded, "Lots of stuff happened. Still, thanks for not believing the stupid shit people are saying about us."

"Always proof check your information!" Lucas raised one finger, smiling. "That's the number one rule for a scientist."

 _Dork_ , Inyssa thought as she took the glass to her mouth to hide her smile.

"Lucas, there is a very important question we need to ask you," she said after drinking some, a mustache of cherry smoothie pasted to her upper lip.

"The most important question!" Barry yelled, throwing his arms into the air. "Ice cream depends on it!"

Lucas was taken aback, fingers tightly gripping the glass in front of him, "W-what is it?"

She and Barry exchanged a knowing look, nodding at each other.

"Were you on a date a couple days ago?"

Her question hit the poor boy like a hammer. He sat stunned for a few moments, until the full realization of what she was implying fell over him. Eyes went wide as plates and she could swear his hair poofed up somewhat.

"No! I wasn't!" Lucas leaned forward, almost toppling the table. "I was with someone I know but it was because of research discussion and it wasn't a date I swear!"

Inyssa raised an eyebrow, amused, and formed a sly smile directed at Barry.

"Dangit Lucas!" The blond boy fell back into his chair, crossing his arms. "Now I need to get you an actual date so I can win back that ice cream!"

Lucas' cheeks went red as he grabbed the edges of the table, "Stop betting on my love life! That's super rude!"

"I would describe it more as being  _interested_  in your love life," Inyssa said, making air quotes. "In the same way an investor is interested in a rising company."

"Or a Mandibuzz in someone dying on the desert," Barry added.

Lucas's shoulders dropped as he sighed, "You two are the worst." He tried to contain a smile. "I'm really glad I can hang out with you again."

Barry returned the sentiment, as expected. Inyssa however, being a minefield of social anxiety and having absolutely no idea how to take a compliment in a healthy way, simply scoffed and looked at the side as she tried to hide her embarrassment.

"Anyway, what have you been up to here?" she asked, trying to derail the conversation. "You said you were doing some kind of research?"

In the amount of time it took her to take a couple more bites and Barry to finish both his slices the boy described the incident near Lake Valor, and how he'd barely escaped death thanks to the stranger that rescued him. Judging by the way his voice stuttered for a moment and his slight blush Inyssa figured he was the person he'd gone on a date with. Not that she would mention it; that would make her the loser of the bet after all.

"That's… interesting," she said. "Azelf, huh? And this guy thinks its disappearance is the reason everything around the lake is dying?"

Barry knit his eyebrows, "I dunno… sounds kinda out there. Do you really think he was saying the truth?"

"It's as good as explanation as any," she shrugged. "And considering the shit we've seen I'm not gonna play the skeptic right now. In the movies those are the ones that die first because they didn't believe that the legendary Pokemon was behind it all."

Lucas nodded nervously, "I had trouble believing it at first, but he seemed very sure of what he was saying." His eyes went to the small backpack sitting at his side. "I would love to do more research on the subject, but I have my hands pretty full at the moment."

"What are you studying right now?" Barry asked.

"Oh! You'll love this!" A huge smile appeared on the boy's face as he took out one of his Pokeballs. "It's about my new Pokemon! Here, I'll show you outside."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa had to blink a few times to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.

The flash of light had blinded her for a moment, and as soon as it dissipated she found herself in front of an avian creature as tall as her, with eyes like shining rubies. His entire body was covered in protective metal armor, and the enormous wings resting at his side looked sharper than anything she'd ever seen.

"Holy crap…" Barry whispered, taking a step back. "You caught a Skarmory!?"

"Yeah, well…"

Inyssa interrupted him, eyes wide open in shock, "How did you catch a fucking Skarmory!?"

The volume of her voice seemed to disturb the beast, who raised his beak ever so slightly and simply stared. Inyssa had to stop herself from shaking.

"As I was saying…" Lucas reiterated, putting a palm on the Pokemon's forehead. "This is my friend: Kevorkian. The man who rescued me in Lake Valor gave him to me in exchange for that Drapion."

She looked at the boy, head tilted to the side, and frowned, "You… how did you get it to obey you?" she asked, incredulous. "Skarmory has a four star danger rating; they are one of the most dangerous Pokemon you can run into!"

"It's so cool!" Barry yelled next to her, flapping his hands. "His wings are like swords!"

Kevorkian seemed unimpressed by the boy's praise, since it started to peck at his wings with his beak, as if attempting to sharpen them. His expression wasn't that of one of the most terrifying predators in existence; more like a bored Pokemon who wished he were asleep.

"He's actually really laid back," Lucas shrugged. "Which is good because he's the basis of my studies."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Wings like swords!" Barry repeated, excitement clear in his voice. "WingSwords!"

Lucas chuckled, "They… sure are, and that's basically the focus of my research." He started rubbing the Pokemon's head playfully. "You see, the metal encasing Skarmory is actually incredibly light and aerodynamic, which is why they can fly in speeds of up to two hundred miles per hour. To this day no one has been able to create a metal with those properties," he explained. "Luckily a Skarmory's feathers can be extracted and be grown back painlessly, and a lot of people have used them as swords in the past. However, I think that's being shortsighted." He smiled to himself. "This metal has too many amazing properties to be used only for creating weapons; which is why I've been working on something else to use it on."

Inyssa blinked a couple times, having trouble following his reasoning, "And what would that be?"

Lucas winked and raised a finger at her, "Ah, that's a secret! I already sent my papers to a manufacturer yesterday, so the first prototype should arrive in at most a week from now."

"That's awesome!" Barry nodded enthusiastically. "Oh man I can't wait to see what that is!"

"Yeah, I'm honestly curious too," she admitted.

The boy blushed, twiddling his fingers, "T-thank you. And… Barry," he looked up at him. "If I remember correctly your birthday should be sometime next week, right? I read it in your trainer card," he clarified before Inyssa could make fun of him. "Who knows, I might be able to give you one of the prototypes as a gift if you're still here by then."

Barry's hair flopped around everywhere from how excitedly he nodded, "Yeah, we'll definitely be here then!"

"We're trying to take it easy from now on," she explained. "We still have a lot of time until the League Championship; we can afford to enjoy our journey a bit more."

"Besides, we have that party in the Great Marsh!" Barry said. "And it falls right on my birthday so we can't miss it."

"Party?" Lucas' nose perked up.

She explained the details of the party she'd found out during her time in Pastoria. From what she'd read it was a yearly event in which young trainers got together and celebrated in Azelf's honor; whom according to legend turned the Great Marsh from a lifeless wasteland into the thing it was today. From it sprouted a wellspring of life, and the city was established next to the marsh shortly after. On the surface it sounded quite formal, but Inyssa was convinced that after so many years it had just turned into an excuse for teens to throw a party with loud music and alcohol.

"In summation we're gonna roast stuff over the bonfire and probably drink something. You wanna come?"

Lucas seemed really unsure, judging by the way his shoulders were squared and his hands clasping each other. She was convinced he would say no and give them an excuse, but after a few moments he nodded nervously.

"Sure… sounds fun."

Somewhat stunned, she walked forward and gave him a pat on the back, smiling. Also tried not to use too much force, since the Skarmory had his eyes on her and she didn't wish to be turned into tiny Inyssa slices.

"We might have to be going since it's getting late," she said, looking up at the sky. "Are you free tomorrow? At around five?"

"I think so, why?"

She exchanged looks with Barry, and noticed the slight nervousness rising through his façade. Not missing a beat she grabbed his hand and gripped it tightly.

"Tomorrow we're taking on the Gym Leader." She puffed her chest up. "Win or lose, we'll show this city what a true trainer looks like."

 

* * *

 

 

Barry faced the next day as best he could, even though his confidence was somewhere between his ankles and the floor.

They began by sleeping until late and eating a healthy lunch, followed by two hours of training. After that they came back to take a shower and get ready; with half an hour or so to sharpen their senses and collect their thoughts. He would've almost wished not to have that time; since waiting only made him more nervous.

The moment they entered the Gym they noticed quite a few trainers standing around, most of which turned to look their way, amused.

"They must've heard we booked a fight for today," Niss said, unimpressed.

"I'm kinda tingly," he admitted, scratching the inside of his arms. "Having people look so much makes me nervous."

"Let them watch," she shrugged. "We'll show them something amazing."

The main arena was located behind the one they'd fought in a few days before, similarly to the way Maylene's Gym was laid out. What was different however was that instead of having a rectangular patch of sand it was a deep pool instead, with countless floating platforms sprinkled everywhere. At the sides were the spectator stands, where already a few dozen people waited expectantly. Not anywhere near as many as in Hearthome's stadium, but he was okay with that.

"Hey, Barry." Niss tapped his hand strongly, voice lit up. "Look!"

He followed her eyes, and enthusiasm, to where their opponent stood at the opposite side of the arena. His stomach dropped as he laid eyes on the man he'd admired so much in his childhood; Crasher Wake. Even from such distance he looked a lot taller than them. He wore tight, blue wrestler pants with orange boots and bracelets, and was topless other than that, showing the gut of a man close to his forties. Adorning his face was the mask he'd worn for his entire career; modeled after the head of a Gyarados.

Too stunned to speak they stood close to the challenger's spot for a few seconds, until they saw him uncross his arms and smile. An unmistakable wave of confidence hit Barry from where he stood, making him shudder.

"Welcome, dude and dudette!" His voice seemed to almost shake the ground beneath him. "I take it you're the challengers I've heard so much about? Well, let me tell you something, you two!" He extended his arm forward, pointing at them with his finger. "You better be ready to give it your all, and then some! I am the one and only Crasher Wake; master of the ocean's wrath and the symbol of justice, OH YEAH!"

Clapping and cheering reached them from the podiums. It seemed they'd started filling up quite nicely; now there were at least a hundred people staring at them from above. Barry caught a potent red belonging to someone's hair; and figured that Reiko and Percy were there as well.

He formed a lopsided, wavy smile. To be in such a position, finally hearing Crasher Wake's signature introduction in person, he couldn't help but feel reinvigorated. His usual energy started flooding from the inside of his body, traveling through his veins like an electrical current. A look at his side told him that Niss felt the same way.

Then, out of nowhere a voice exploded from the speakers hanging at the sides of the podiums, startling him.

" _Gooood day ladies, gents and all the rest!"_  It was a girl speaking, her voice what he imagined an Exploud in human form would sound like.  _"As you all know I'm Marissa, number one student of Crasher Wake and charmer extraordinaire, and I am joined in this lovely evening by the one and only Matchstick!"_

" _The contestants today seem promising, don't you think?"_  The second voice was that of a young man, his tone a lot mellower.  _"These two have already made a name for themselves during their recent Gym battles."_

Niss laughed, shaking her head slightly.

"Commentators, eh?" She grabbed one hand with the other, cracking her knuckles. "Looks like we're getting the whole package today."

"This is the best day of my life," Barry whispered back, smiling from ear to ear.

" _On this side!"_  The girl shouted, almost blowing everyone's eardrums up.  _"We have the Child of Thorns: Inyssa, and the Yellow Hurricane: Barry! The first is the very tired and somewhat evil looking miss at the right; she's a tactician with a mind sharper than a Scyther's… uh… scythe."_  Each word was strangely pronounced, as if she were too excited to say some of them.  _"And the second! His Pokemon are fast as lightning and hit like a hammer; if there's an obstacle in his way this trainer will plow right through it! Fresh from Twinleaf Town; I present to you the power couple that's razing through Sinnoh in search for the one and only title of Champion!"_

They both shifted uncomfortable at the term power couple, trying to act as subtly as possible.

" _However! There is an obstacle they must pass through before that,"_  Barry could almost feel her enthusiastic pointing towards the man at the other side of the arena.  _"To proceed they must defeat our mighty Gym Leader: Crasher Wake! How will they fare against such a challenge? That's what we're here to find out, folks!"_

Waves and waves of ovations filled the arena, filling Barry with a strange mix of anxiety and enthusiasm.

" _Please, if you may: Let the first contestant step forward."_  The tired sounding man spoke.

Barry took the first step before Inyssa could react. He didn't know why; they'd both agreed that she should be the first to go so that he could take notes on Wake's battling style and be ready for the fight.

But that wouldn't do anymore. He was a trainer, and he couldn't just tail behind his friend his entire life. If he wanted to be the Champion he'd be ready for any challenge, no matter how unexpected it might be.

"Knock it out of the park!" Niss yelled behind him. He smiled.

He stood in his side of the arena, across the man he had to defeat. Crasher Wake raised both hands to the side and the entire place fell silent. They both took out a Pokeball at the same time.

"No hesitation! That's what I like to see from my opponents!" The man yelled, winding back his arm. "Hear this, young man. My Pokemon have been toughened up by the most ruthless of storms! If you think you can beat them then give it your best!"

Two balls of light exploded at opposite sides of the pool, materializing into their Pokemon. On Barry's side appeared Kitsune, who fell swiftly into one of the floating platforms. In front of him an enormous fish looking creature showed its ugly head. Its body was bright red, with multiple white fins coming from the sides and back of its body. Between its eyes was a sturdy, silver horn.

"A Seaking?" He whispered to himself, narrowing his eyes. "That's… weird, but good for me!"

Wake yelled as he postured forward, "Attack him with your horn!"

Barry smiled. That was exactly what he needed; the closer his Pokemon got the easier it would be to hit it with his trump card. He was very aware that none of his partners were especially strong against water types, so he made sure he'd have something under his sleeve.

"Kitsune, wait for it!" he yelled. The Kadabra held his ground and pointed his spoon at the rushing water; staring as it parted in half by the Seaking's horn. "Now, Charge Beam!"

The audience gasped in surprise. With a twirl of his fingers the psychic Pokemon imbued his spoon with cackling, wavering golden energy as the air around him ionized. The beam of electricity tore the air in half as it traveled towards Seaking; too fast to dodge. Too fast to even react to it.

Seaking didn't need to react, however, as Barry painfully learned. Instead of hitting it the energy spiraled around its body for a moment, before being fully absorbed by its horn, which took on a sickly yellow glow.

At any other time Barry would've loved to see the face he made at that moment.

"What!?" He screamed, taking a step back. "What… why didn't that work!? Seaking's a water type!"

Kitsune was similarly stunned, eyes wide open as his opponent stared him down, its body glistening with absorbed power. At the other side of the arena Crasher Wake smiled.

"Counter with Signal Beam!"

By the time his panic overcame the shock he was in, he was too late to react. A heavy splash was heard in front of him as Seaking jumped out of the water, a pulsing orb of green light at the tip of his horn. Barry opened his mouth to scream, to tell Kitsune to dodge, but he wasn't fast enough. The beam hit his Pokemon square in the chest, sending him spiraling back until he violently crashed against the wall of the pool.

He returned Kitsune to his Pokeball as soon as he saw him sink into the water. His hand shook around it, his expression indescribable.

" _Ohhh it looks like we already have first blood, folks!"_ The announcer's voice boomed through the stadium, followed by screams and cheers.  _"And this is one we've seen million of times before, haven't we? Tell me Matchstick, how many newbies have fallen prey to the king of the sea?"_

" _More than I could count, honestly. Seaking is an exceedingly rare Pokemon in Sinnoh, which explains why not many trainers know about its horn's property."_

" _That's right, folks! For those in the audience who don't know; Seaking's special ability is called Lightning Rod! Its horn can absorb any kind of electricity you throw at it, negating one of its main weaknesses! But wait, don't hang up the phone yet because there's more! For the low price of one incredible ability you can also take home the fact that all the energy it absorbs can be redirected into its next attacks! Call now for more amazing facts, only 2.99 an hour!"_

" _We don't get paid for this, Marissa."_

Barry looked down at the Pokeball in his hand, the air around him growing denser with each second that passed. Cold sweat ran from his nape down his back, and he was pretty sure he was somewhat shaking.

It wasn't supposed to go like this, he assured himself. He'd planned for Kistune to be his main lynchpin during the fight, and now he was down without even leaving a scratch on his opponent. And all of his remaining Pokemon were at a disadvantage against water. He'd gotten himself into the literally worst situation possible, all because he was an idiot who'd dozed off constantly during trainer class.

_Niss would've probably realized what was happening._

"Hey, kid!" Wake's voice brought him back to reality. "You're not already giving up on me, are you? Is the trainer I've heard so much of really this weak?"

" _Oh snap! Crasher Wake might be a water type expert, but he sure knows how to burn people, folks!"_

Barry frowned, heat rising to his face. His free hand went to one of the Pokeballs on his belt, gripping it tightly enough for his fingers to hurt.

He could still do this. He could turn this around if he played the match perfectly.

Maybe.

"Wrathia!" he screamed, throwing the ball into the field. "Your turn!"

On top of the platform materialized his newly acquired Pokemon, her fur as black as coal and eyes burning with determination. Any other fire type would've probably flinched at the sight of water surrounding them, but Wrathia simply scoffed, a small ember escaping through her fangs.

At least the sight of Crasher Wake's grimace brought him some pleasure. He could see the confusion and hesitation on his face, even through his mask.

" _What is this!?"_  Melissa yelped through the speakers.  _"Is my eyesight as bad as I've been told or did our contestant just sent out a fire type!?"_

" _Fire and dark, if I'm not mistaken. A bold strategy, considering neither of those would be good against its opponent."_

" _Has our challenger lost his mind already or does he have a hidden plan? In any case let's give him a good cheering for his bravado, folks!_

He tried to ignore the booming voices of the commentators, breathing deeply and focusing his sight into the fight ahead. He couldn't get caught off guard like he did before.

There was a reason he'd called in Wrathia. She had a way to win this battle, even if it was insanely risky and not very likely to happen. But that's where he came in; he needed to think of a way for his strategy to work, that was the whole point of teaching her that particular TM. He had the end goal, now all he needed was to plot a course to arrive at it.

"Forward!" Wake ordered with a mighty shout. "Anihilate that fiend with Water Pulse!"

Once again the pool shook as Seaking jumped. This time he opened his mouth and released a torrent of spiraling water towards them, almost as wide as the platforms themselves.

"Jump!"

Wrathia kneeled her forelegs slightly, leaping up just before the attack reached her. Her body reached what looked like more than teen feet up, until she hovered right above her opponent. This was his chance.

"Use Smog on the arena!" Barry ordered.

Smiling, the Houndoom opened her maw and spat a noxious wave of purple, poisonous smoke downwards. The heavy cloud not only covered most of the arena but it penetrated into the water around Seaking as well.

Barry smiled to himself as Wrathia landed on another platform at his right, "What was that about weak trainer, Crasher Wake?"

His taunt made the man wince for a moment, but after the initial sprout of anger he simply laughed, putting both hands on his hips.

"That's the spirit, my boy!" He punched the air in front of him, smiling. "But don't think a little poison is gonna bring us down!"

"I don't expect the poison to," he grinned. "Say, can you see my Pokemon anywhere?"

For a moment he simply looked at him confused, until his eyes set on the arena. Wrathia was nowhere to be seen, the cloud of toxic smoke too thick to make out anything inside the arena.

" _Oh my goodness, she's disappeared! I'll repeat it once more folks; the challenger's Houndoom has disappeared into that thick smoke! Could this be his master plan?"_

"Nothing I, Crasher Wake can't handle!" The man assured his audience. "Seaking, keep using Water Pulse! We'll hit her eventually!"

The next seconds were a grueling torture for Barry. With every torrent of water that shot out the smoke he prayed that none would hit Wrathia, especially not while she was mid jump. She might've been able to survive one blast, but if it hit her while she was moving into another platform then she'd surely fall into the toxic water, and that would be it.

Wake and his Pokemon got more desperate the more time passed. They must have known Barry didn't expect to win with poison damage alone; that would take a lot more time than he had in his hands.

"Alright, that's enough! Seaking, jump and dispel the smoke with a Water Pulse from above!"

Barry grit his teeth, trying to contain a smile. That was the exact chance he was waiting for.

Without further ado the Leader's Pokemon did a jump almost as impressive as Wrathia's, and in the middle of the air shot the most powerful attack yet, pushing itself even further up. The column of water tore a hole through the smoke, dissipating it almost effortlessly.

The arena became visible again, and Wake made a face that Barry would remember forever.

Standing on a platform far away from Barry was Wrathia, fur glistening with a pale green glow. Between her jaws was a gigantic, pulsing sphere of energy she'd been gathering that entire time.

" _I cannot believe my eyes, folks! Is that what I think it is?"_

"No!" Wake yelled, panic clear in his voice. "Seaking, stop her! Water Pulse!"

Barry sent his arm forward, smiling, "Solar Beam!"

But his Pokemon did not attack. Barry's smile died in his lips as he saw Wrathia still gathering energy, still not ready as the torrent of water fell over her.

It hit her hard enough to sink not only her body, but the entire platform she was standing in. The water of the pool violently swirled as it swallowed them both, Barry simply staring in horror.

"Wrathia!" he yelled, desperate.

"It's over, kid." Crasher Wake crossed his arms, grinning. "No one can stand against…"

A column of light tore through the water, blinding them. The force of the explosion pushed both trainers back as their bodies were completely soaked by the resulting cyclone. Seaking didn't have time to dodge as the light swallowed it whole with an ear shattering roar.

As soon as the attack dissipated, they could see the water Pokemon's body stuck to one of the walls, completely unconscious. Smoke rose from his fins in tiny, spiraling wisps

Cheers and screams erupted from the podiums, strong enough to drown out Melissa's voice as she yelled in excitement. Barry saw as Wrathia's shaking paw rose from the water, claws closing around one of the remaining platforms. She barely managed to climb into it before collapsing, a proud smile stuck to her lips.

He raised her Pokeball and returned her to it, only after cleaning his eyelids with the back of his sleeve. Wake stared at him in awe, and did the same soon after. No words were needed as they stared each other down, taking out another one from their belts.

This was his last shot. He needed to defeat both of Wake's remaining Pokemon with only one. His fingers pushed tightly against the metal of his starter's Pokeball. If anyone could do it…

"Pedri!"

He yelled the name with every ounce of strength left in his voice as he threw it. The Prinplup materialized soon after on top of one of the two remaining platforms, his fins crossed and a frown stuck to his face. He was ready to fight.

"Now that's what I call an impressive water type," Wake said, grinning. "But I'm afraid not impressive enough, for he will have to face against this!"

The light that exploded in front of Barry grew, and grew and grew until the true form of the Pokemon he'd face revealed itself. If not for the myriad of emotions already running through him he might've been paralyzed with fear, what with a gigantic sea serpent staring him down, its burning red eyes set on them.

The Gyarados' constantly open mouth released a roar that shook Barry to his core, and almost made him drop his Pokeball. His starter didn't falter however, as he stared the beast down, eyes full of determination.

" _And there it is folks, Crasher Wake's famous Gyarados! How will our young contestant fair against the wrath of the ocean itself!? Keep watching to find out!"_

" _It will be an interesting matchup indeed. Since they are both water types the fight will come down to whoever one is physically stronger."_

Barry knew that very well, which is why he wasn't as scared as he should have. If there was one Pokemon that could compete with such a beast when it came to strength, then that was Pedri.

"Gyarados, bite him down to size!"

"Pedri, use Aerial Ace!"

Wake's terrifying Pokemon threw itself at them, its fangs covered with dark energy. Its speed was almost enough to throw them off, but Prinplup barely managed to move to the side before he could be chomped down. Taking advantage of his opportunity he slashed at the beast's side with his iron fins.

Barry's expression darkened as he saw his starter's slash leave nothing but a scratch. He tried to swallow his doubt down and ordered another attack. Pedri jumped forward, but before he could even wind back his arm the beast's tail swatted t him with enormous strength, throwing him directly into the water.

"Get up!" he yelled, desperation growing inside him. "Use Metal Claw!"

"Counter with Aqua Tail!"

Pedri jumped out of the water like a torpedo, his right fin glowing with white energy. Gritting his teeth he slashed once again, his attack connecting with Gyarados' tail. The clash sent a wide ripple through the water, as the smallest Pokemon was sent backwards, falling once again into the toxic pool.

Barry opened his mouth to declare another attack, but no sound came out. There was something stuck in his throat, something solid and heavy and hot that prevented him from even moving. He saw as Pedri desperately tried to claw his way out from the water, his body shaking as poison took hold of him. Gyarados, being able to float above the water, did not have the same problem and without waiting it threw itself at Pedri, ready to finish the fight.

He couldn't do anything. Despair freezing his body, Barry could only watch as Gyarados played around with his best Pokemon, throwing him from one extreme of the arena to the other with its tail.

Even without instruction Pedri still did his best, slashing and fighting back whenever he had the chance. He'd even managed to get a few good hits in, but at this rate there was no chance for him to win, not while neck deep in poisoned water and being thrown around like a ragdoll. Not with such a disgraceful trainer commanding him.

Barry lowered his head, eyes covered in shadows, and raised Pedri's Pokeball. His friend wasn't at fault, and there was no need to make him suffer further if the result of the battle was clear as day already.

His finger barely touched the button when a familiar voice broke through the arena.

"DON'T GIVE UP!"

The scream startled him out of his daze, while also silencing everyone in the arena. Slowly he turned his head up towards the sound and into the stands, where he noticed a particular red coat and white hat.

"You can do it!" Niss yelled at the top of her lungs, punching the air up. "Come on Barry, kick is ass! Kick his ass, kick his ass!"

Her chant became contagious, as everyone around her started screaming in unison while raising their fists to the sky. He could've swear he even heard Melissa saying it. The cacophony of screams filled the entire room, traveling from the air into the ground and all throughout Barry's body, making him shudder with something he couldn't quite identify.

That's when it happened.

Barry closed his eyes and took a deep, deliberate breath, unconsciously summoning that strength he'd called so many times before. Once he opened them he felt it, spiraling around his body and behind his eyes, covering him like a gust of weightless, warm wind. Staring down at his hands he saw the golden wisps dance around him like old friends, and smiled.

Then he looked up, and the world itself changed. He didn't just hear the chants, he saw them as well. Wavering threads of what appeared to be glass danced in the air, glistening with all the colors of the rainbow as they floated down to him. They enveloped his arms, legs and torso until there was no part of him that wasn't glowing. He felt the power spiraling around his fingertips, and laughed. An outwardly, not quite human laugh that shook the entire arena in waves.

The voice talked to him then.

" _You're a slow bloomer, aren't you? How much longer were you going to make me wait before finally syncing with me?"_

Barry looked around, but no one was close enough and the voice sounded right next to him. No, it sounded even closer, like coming from inside his head.

_W-who are you?_

" _We can talk about it later. Now you have a fight to win, don't you?"_

He looked towards the arena, where Pedri still held on against the might of his opponent. Clear as day was the rainbow colored flame inside him, burning with a clear purple glow. He then lowered his sight to his own body, the transparent glowing threads still dancing around him.

_What do I do? What is this?_

A cackle was heard inside his mind, so inhuman and mischievous that it made him shudder violently.

" _What else? It's the crystallization of Emotion, spun into raw power by my hand. You may use it as you wish, for it is my gift to you."_

At any other moment he might've questioned the voice further, or perhaps be too weirded out to act. But now his starter needed him, and he would not let him down again. He threw his hand forward, smiling, and the voice that came out of him was intertwined with someone else's.

"Pedri, get up!" He ordered, grinning from ear to ear. "You weren't born to be on your knees, were you?"

His words triggered something on the Prinplup. As the burning wisps and threads that covered Barry traveled to him, he slowly got to his feet, pushing the terrible weight of his exhaustion as back as he could. Before him stood his opponent, wielding a power unlike any other he'd encountered before. Any other Pokemon would've given up against such a terrifying beast.

He smiled, as his body began to glow. He was not just any Pokemon.

A collective gasp was heard around the arena as Pedri's form began to change. He grew to almost twice his size, and from his beak upwards three sharp protrusions rose like trident shaped horns.

No, not horns, Barry thought.

A crown.

As the light dissipated he saw the final form of his starter, and couldn't help but laugh with joy. His black fins were now rimmed in blue, shining steel and were as wide as his body, under which were sharp golden claws. From his neck down to his waist his fur was white in a collar-like pattern, making him look a lot fancier than Barry ever expected him to be.

Without a second thought he raised his Pokédex, whose voice could barely be heard with the screams ringing around him.

_Empoleon: The Emperor Pokemon – Water/Steel Type: One of the proudest creatures in existence; the crown like horns that grow from its beak attests to its power. It can swim faster than a jet boat and, while it tends to avoid unnecessary disputes, if anyone threatens its pride it will decimate them with its wings that can cut through an ice floe._

Barry looked up at his friend; pride was certainly what he so clearly saw dancing inside him, burning so strongly it was almost painful to look at it. All around him he could hear the cheers and screams of Melissa and the audience, but he paid no mind to them.

He was in the middle of a battle, and the only important thing was the opponent in front of him.

"Gyarados, use Waterfall!" Crasher Wake yelled, sweat running down his forehead.

Barry laughed again, the solution to his problem so clear he couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before. Melissa, Maylene and Niss had all been right about him; he really should've been relying on his instincts from the get go. To try and imitate someone he admired, someone with a style of battling so fundamentally different from his was nothing but futile.

As he threw his hand forward to declare an attack, he finally understood. All the strategies and ideas that flooded his mind in battle, that he'd considered too risky or stupid to work, he should've been relying on them from the very beginning.

In front of him Gyarados dove into the water, and a moment later a massive geyser of water exploded up, traveling towards Pedri.

"Slice through it!"

Pedri did as he was told, without a moment's hesitation. Winding back his wing he slashed at the pulsing whirlwind of water. It cut through it effortlessly, showering the arena with droplets of water as it exploded outwards. More screams rang all around him, and he even saw the Gyarados' eyes open wide in surprise.

But that was only the beginning.

"Pedri, let's finish this! Ready a Metal Claw!" He raised his fist, a wild smile covering his face. "Come on Crasher Wake, give me all you've got!"

"Same goes to you, kid!" The man laughed. "Aqua Tail one last time!"

Empoleon threw his wings to the side, and the energy that covered them made the water rise all around him in wild spirals. As the platform he was standing in began to sink by the pressure alone, Barry gave his next order.

"Now Aqua Jet! Combine them like Reiko taught us!"

All the moisture in the air gathered around Pedri's wings, and began swirling through its sharp edges like a water jet. The pressure being released could be felt even in the stands at the sides of the arena, almost powerful enough to make Gyarados doubt himself. However this didn't last long as he threw his body forward with a roar, swatting the air with his tail.

"This is it!" Barry screamed, eyes gold and fearless. "You folks in the audience like improvised special moves, right? Then yell it with me!"

He felt the weight everyone's emotions fall on him as he threw his hand forward, declaring his final attack.

"Emperor Claw!"

As his scream was echoed by the entire audience Pedri jumped forward, determination burning through him. With all the strength left in him he slashed the air with both his wings in an X shape, as soon as Gyarados' tail fell on him.

He felt the impact on his bones, rumbling inside him like an earthquake.

" _I cannot believe my eyes folks! That was the absolutely most amazing exchange we've seen in a long time! And the winner is…!"_

Water and dust stopped falling on the arena, showing him a view made him sob in joy. On top of the floating, unconscious body of Gyarados stood his starter, looking down at him with a proud smile on his face.

" _Barry's Empoleon! By god I swear I have never seen such a sturdy Pokemon in all my years as a commentator!"_

" _This is our first year, Melissa."_

At the other extreme Crasher Wake smiled as he returned his Pokemon to its ball, his eyes shining with excitement. After a few moments he took out another from his belt, and this did not faze Barry at all.

"That was very impressive, kid," he said, spinning it in his hand. "What do you say? Still have enough strength in you to take on my main Pokemon?"

Barry put both hands in his hips, shaking his head playfully. The very idea of giving up now was ludicrous, even if Pedri could barely stand, even if victory seemed almost impossible. From the depth of his heart he yelled back his answer:

"BRING IT!"

 

* * *

 

 

Half an hour later Barry and Niss walked out of the Gym, hands empty and no new badge to be seen on them.

And yet the boy smiled to himself and looked up at his friend, who still hadn't stopped freaking out about the fight and didn't seem to care much about her loss. She almost looked like him, barely containing herself from bouncing in place as her words got jumbled together in excitement. On his other side was Lucas, doing pretty much the same.

The fire behind his eyes had evaporated after the fight, and for the first time he was okay with that. He'd have tell Niss what happened, but he was somewhat sure he could summon the feeling and that voice back if he really tried. He felt more solid, somehow. More grounded in reality.

"…and the name you came up with was really cool too!" Niss finished speaking, her cheeks turning red. "Barry, that was incredible."

Lucas nodded, "As the first Gym battle I saw that was pretty amazing, yes."

He shrugged, heat rising to his face, "T-thanks. I'll definitely give it my all next time."

"Same for me!" Niss smiled, raising one fist. "Now that we know how he fights we can come up with a good strategy to beat him."

More and more people yelled encouragements at them as they walked past, smiling and giving them thumbs up. He appreciated them and waved back, and even Niss didn't seem as bothered as usual.

He saw two familiar figures approaching from the exit of the Gym, and gulped. Reiko and Percy walked to them, the first looking down with a strange expression on her face, and the second looking bored as usual. Niss noticed them, and her smile died as soon as she did.

An awkward silence fell over them for a few moments, accompanied by his friend's clear, heavy animosity. Finally Reiko looked up, and spoke.

"That was a great fight, Barry," she smiled shyly. "And… uh…"

She scratched the back of her neck, cheeks turning the same color as her hair.

"I'm… sorry," she finally said, startling them, "for the other day. I picked a fight just because I was angry, and I realize it really isn't any of your fault. I'm sorry."

Next to him Lucas looked as confused as ever, having no idea who these people were. Niss on the other wand was too stunned to speak, eyes wide and teeth clenched.

"It's… okay," Barry said, smiling back. "At least on my part, I don't mind. I know how sensitive those topics are and how they can make people feel."

Another silence fell, as they all waited for Niss' response. The girl looked as lost as a Spinda, and needed a few seconds before coming up with a good answer. She looked too incredulous, like she couldn't believe Reiko's anger had dissipated so quickly. Barry had an idea of why she felt that way.

"Yeah, what Barry said," she shrugged, almost too violently. "If you're okay with it… uh, yeah."

A third awkward silence, followed by Percy smiling in relief and Reiko clapping her hands as she smiled.

"Perfect!" she yelled, showing her teeth. "Now, we need to discuss all about this party that's coming up."


	36. Chapter 36

For the first time in his life Barry would not be spending his birthday with his parents, and he'd been trying his best not to let that affect him too much.

He couldn't blame them for not coming all the way to Pastoria. With the threat of Team Galactic now looming all over the region it would be a miracle if they got a single day off. The people of Sinnoh needed them; what was a lousy birthday compared to that?

They called to say they'd swing by as soon as they could to give him his present, but he told them not to worry through a forced smile. They shouldn't strain themselves, he said. There would be plenty of time later to get together and eat cake.

Hopefully.

Forlorn, he looked down at the birthday card they'd sent through Noctowl mail, and folded it into his pocket after what felt like a minute. He walked to the mirror in his room and examined his own face.

No, that wouldn't do, he decided. He'd have to change his expression before going downstairs to have breakfast with Niss and the rest. It was  _his_  day, and he was supposed to be happy, if not for himself then at least for the people around him.

So he changed into his freshly washed clothes, combed his hair for the second or third time in his life and practiced a few smiles. Once he found one that suited him he opened the door of his room and walked down the stairs, into the lobby of the Pokemon Center.

He barely set foot there before a familiar pair of arms closed around him, throwing his body into the nearby wall.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa didn't care one bit that the place was packed full of trainers (and to be honest, when the hell wasn't it?), nor that she felt a few of eyes on her back as soon as she tackle-hugged Barry into the wall.

It was her best friend's birthday god dammit, and she was not going to tame her excitement for the sake of a bunch of strangers. And if anyone had any complaints then she would gladly tell them where they could stuff them, thank you very much.

"It's your birthday!" she declared, tightening her grip around his neck.

"It sure is," Barry replied with a strained tone.

She freed him from her strangling hug and took a step back, still grinning from ear to ear, "I can't believe you're finally a grownup! Now you can do as much illegal stuff as you want!"

"I… don't think that's how that works, Niss."

Correct or not, she grabbed him by the hand and walked him to their table, where Percy and Reiko waited and failed to pretend that they didn't crave the delicious chocolate cake in front of them.

Inyssa did notice Barry wasn't as enthusiastic about it as he should've been, but she figured it must be nervousness or something like that. Carefully she cut four slices and handed it to them, excitement still running like electricity through her.

Reiko was the first to take a bite, or a chomp to be more accurate, as she disappeared three thirds of the slice into her mouth.

"Eighteen, huh?" she said after swallowing it. "If this weren't such an ass-backwards region you'd be getting your first Pokemon today."

Inyssa pursed her lips, trying to ignore the sting of her comment.

"I'm surprised they let you have one before that," added Percy.

"That's because Rowan is the coolest professor there is," Inyssa said, lifting her chin.

"We should call him," Barry hurried to say, catching the glimpse of conflict in Reiko's eyes. "And thank him for letting us start our journey early."

Inyssa let out a  _Pfft_  and patted him in the back hard enough to sting. She was having trouble controlling her strength, or any other part of her for that matter. It had been a long time since she'd felt so excited for someone else.

"There's no time for that!" she pointed a finger at his face. "This is your day, and I'm gonna make sure that you spend every minute of it having as much fun as possible!"

"It kinda sounds like a threat when you put it that way."

Reiko and Percy exchanged a look at the other side of the table, trying to stifle their smiles. A strange sort of recognition flashed across their eyes.

"That seems like a noble enough endeavor for me to waste my time on," said the latter, feigning a sigh.

"We have a lot of time to kill before the bonfire party," nodded the former. "So let's make good use of it."

 

* * *

 

 

A few hours later, and for the first time in his life, Barry thought that he'd gotten enough sugar for one day already. It was a wholly unpleasant feeling, one that he'd rather not repeat in the future.

Other than that, it all went rather nicely. Even though the absence of his parents still stung, his Pokemon did their best to cheer him up along with everyone else. Most failed to understand the concept of a birthday, but still relished in celebrating it with him. He even managed to find a small birthday hat to put on Auri's head while she snoozed off in his arms.

His presents definitely took the cake, though. Reiko and Percy gifted him a comprehensive Pokemon care set, full to the brim of little doodads and tools that he could use to pamper the members of his team. The set included a grinding wheel for Pedri's fins, a soft hairbrush and a complementary napkin made out of Flaffy's wool, quality tweezers and a box full of differently flavored Pokeblocks, which would come in handy whenever he needed to train his teammates. If those lazy butts didn't work hard to win then at least they would do it for delicious treats.

Lucas, who met him and Inyssa for a few minutes in a nearby café, went above and beyond his expectations and finally revealed his secret project; a set of four, beautiful silver Pokeballs made with the metal from Skarmory's feathers. He would've been content with just how nice they looked, but it turned out they had a practical use besides being pretty. Lucas told him to grab one and throw it as if he were catching a Pokemon, and he did. The ball traveled for about twenty feet before slightly stopping in place, spinning and flying back to his hand, though the surprise made it so he almost got hit by it in the face.

"The lightness and flexibility of the metal allows it to work like a boomerang. That way you don't have to go look for it after you throw it," Lucas said, raising his finger in a scholarly manner. "They're only the beta version of my project, but I hope they can work well, even if they have a few defects."

One of those defects, he explained, was that the premeditated lockdown system hadn't been installed yet. This was the feature that allowed a trainer, should they catch a particularly violent Pokemon, to forcefully activate the lock of the device so it couldn't be opened in any way for a period of six hours. It was a failsafe that was rarely used, so Barry didn't mind and thanked him for such an amazing gift. And, being who he was, he gave two of the Pokeballs to Niss.

Not wanting to be outmatched, she presented her own gift in return. He couldn't help but gasp as he set eyes on it, curling his fingers in excitement. It was an odd looking black belt, a simple piece of cloth that most would've mistaken for trash.

But he knew better, from years and years of watching competitive battles. He knew that the belt had been weaved from a Hydreigon's fur, and he knew that it had the strange power of allowing the Pokemon wearing it to deal significant more damage to their opponents if their attack had type effectiveness.

Touching it felt like grabbing air that had been given form. He stared at it for almost an entire minute, speechless.

"Niss… this is…" he whispered, voice thin. "This is an S rank battle item! How did you…?"

He was once again silenced with a sudden hug, followed by a soft kiss on the cheek.

"Don't worry about it," she said, beaming. "You deserve it."

She didn't stop there, and Barry soon learned that Niss' ambition extended past her desire to become the Champion and into anything she put her mind into. She worked as hard as her under slept body allowed so he could have a pleasant birthday, and he enjoyed it to the fullest to thank her for it.

He had such a great time that he even managed to forget for a day about the voice that had spoken to him during the Gym fight. He had an inkling as to whom that voice belonged to, but he decided to investigate later, considering the occasion and all.

In the end they all decided to head back to their rooms at around eight, giving them enough time to shower, change and have a little nap before the party, something they'd all been looking forward to.

Barry smiled as he lay his head into the soft pillow of his bed. Even if it wasn't what they expected, even if it turned out to be boring or awful, he didn't care. As far as he knew his birthday had already been a success, and he wouldn't let anything ruin that for him.

 

* * *

 

 

The last party Inyssa had gone to happened when she was barely fifteen, thrown by a snotty girl in her class that invited her because she had a crush on her, or so the rumors said. Even then, all she did was stand close to a pillar and slowly sip her cup of soda, until the clock reached twelve and she was free to leave.

All and all, she wasn't quite  _in_ , as she imagined the kids said these days, but that didn't mean she couldn't have fun. She'd just follow the party rules she'd seen in movies: don't get into trouble, try not to make a fool of yourself by dancing and, if two people started fighting, cheer on the one that looked bigger and stronger.

Those were the thoughts going through her head as they made their way towards the Great Marsh. Barry walked next to her, dressed quite casually with a simple green shirt and grey jeans. She'd decided to go for the stylish look with a loose, thin sweater, tight blue pants and a purple pair of aviator glasses.

"You know those are for like… when it's sunny out, right?" asked Barry.

"Style is style, regardless of the time of day," she replied.

She'd thought that making a bonfire in the middle of a marsh seemed like a bit of a counterproductive idea, but as they arrived to the party and noticed the giant, twisting pillar of flame beaconing them, she had to admit that, for once, she'd been wrong. Whoever had planned the party managed to find an elevated piece of ground far away from all the water and Pokemon, around which a multitude of people did… whatever people did in parties. As they wormed their way through she saw that a few were drinking with friends, while others danced to the beat of some douchebag's guitar, his voice like that of a cheese grater being run through a meat grinder.

Since the place was crawling with wild vegetation and the light of the flames didn't reach far, she couldn't exactly tell how spread out the people were or how big the party was. Still, judging by the distant screams and laughs she heard once in a while she figured it must've extended at least a few hundred yards.

It took them a few minutes of walking until they found Reiko and Percy, and they were only able to do so thanks to the former's hair being as bright as the bonfire itself.

"Man, it's been what… minutes?" Reiko smiled, placing both hands on her hips. "Never thought I'd see you without the hat, pipsqueak."

Percy tried to stifle laughter, "She was seriously considering making a bet whether or not you had a bald spot under that thing."

Her comment shouldn't have bothered Inyssa, it had no reason to do so. And still she felt that spark in her stomach, heating up her limbs ever so slightly. With a deep breath she forced the anger down and tried to smile.

"Thanks. You two look… adjective."

"You look great!" Barry added, throwing his hands up in the air.

As they made their way towards a little corner of the party they could call their own, Inyssa chastised herself for the way she was feeling. She really didn't want to be mad at Reiko, she knew it was stupid and both of them had already apologized to the other. But then again her anger had never given a single shit about what she wanted, so why would it start now.

Gloomily she grabbed a red plastic cup from one of the nearby tables spread all around and imitated Reiko as she mixed soda with an alcoholic beverage whose name she couldn't quite make out. She felt Barry's judging glance on her as she took it to her lips, but decided to ignore him.

It tasted overly sweet, with the unmistakable odor of alcohol she'd grown accustomed to by living with her mother. Not bad, but not great either, she thought as she took a second sip.

She didn't understand what was the big deal with it. Why did her mother like it so much?

"Of course it had to be sweet," Percy scoffed, bringing her back to reality. "I'm guessing the frat boys throwing this party haven't considered wine as an alternative for those of us with an actual palate, have they?"

"Forget wine," said Reiko, "where's the sake!? I can't just drink this sweet stuff all night, I'm gonna get cavities!"

Inyssa moved the cup with her fingers, sloshing the drink inside, "Yeah… alcohol talk. I totally understand what you guys are talking about," she muttered sarcastically.

"You shouldn't even be drinking," Reiko pointed at her, frowning. "But I know a guy who should!"

She extended her arm forward and offered some to Barry. His hair seemed to get pointier as he was approached with it, and he raised both hands to the side, gulping.

"It's… it's okay," he smiled nervously. "I think I'll just go with soda for now."

Some awkwardness aside, the party didn't end up being the oppressive, anxious trap she expected, mostly because the attendants seemed to keep to themselves and their group of friends, thank god.

Looking down at her wrist she saw Hao with what she imagined were party clothes, dancing and winking at her. At least someone was having a good time.

They kept talking over the loud music for a few minutes, occasionally sipping their drinks without thinking about it much, and Inyssa realized she was slowly getting used to the strong flavor of it. They had planned to do a toast for Barry's birthday, but they needed Lucas for that and the boy hadn't arrived yet, for some ungodly reason.

Barry's Pokétch started to beep as soon as she thought that.

"Huh? Oh, it's Lucas!" he said, having difficulty reading the message with one hand occupied. "He says he's here already, but… he's being, held up?" he scrunched up his nose. "What does that mean?"

"Did he say where he is?" inquired Inyssa.

"Yeah, close to the entrance and the bonfire."

They decided to go look for him, hoping he hadn't gotten himself into any kind of trouble, though she couldn't imagine how he could do such a thing. The boy was so stupidly adorable even a starving Ursaring would've had pity on him.

They found him behind one of the thick trees that were blocking the light of the bonfire, which slightly reflected off his thick glasses. The boy looked towards them and formed a wavy, anxious smile. He seemed to be talking to someone who was sitting against the tree.

Someone who, as Inyssa discovered once she reached her, looked like a younger version of Fantina, if the woman fancied dressing up as a shitty witch. Her entire outfit was a dark purple, and her skin was so pale it almost seemed to emit light outwards. She set her gaze on the four of them, and showed a smile of shiny white teeth that made Inyssa shiver. After a few moments it set on Barry, whose eyes had gone wide a few moments before.

"Ah… Barry," she said, barely above a whisper. "The stars told me we would meet here tonight."

 

* * *

 

 

Barry wondered if he secretly had some sort of power to run into the weirdest people he could find, and then he remembered his own theory about the voice he'd heard in the Gym and decided not to follow that particular line of thought further.

"H-hey Lucas. Hey Sanbica," he waved weakly at both of them. "Nice to see you too."

He felt everyone's eyes on him, which gave fuel to the ants running under his skin. He figured an introduction wouldn't hurt, but he honestly had no idea where to even begin when it came to the woman sitting in front of them.

Reiko was the first to break the ice, "So… I'm guessing you're the Lucas these two have been talking about," she addressed the boy, who nodded nervously and looked down to the floor. "Damn, you're even more of a pipsqueak than Niss! Nice to meet you, pal."

She gave him a pat on the back so strong even Barry could feel it in his bones, and Niss turned towards him with a look of:  _And you say I'm the tactless one_.

 _You are the tactless one_ , he replied with his smile.

"And you…" Reiko looked down to the strange woman, narrowing her eyes. "Hold on a second. That outfit… you're a medium, aren't you?"

Sanbica's eyes widened, and the way her sclera contrasted against the darkness made her look like a Hoot-hoot.

"Finally, someone who knows how to show respect around here! I was getting tired of being called a hex maniac by all these thoughtless brats." She shook her head indignantly.

Barry caught a glimpse of Niss rolling her eyes at that comment.

"That's awful," said Reiko. "I know a lot of mediums from Lavender tower and they're super cool and fun to hang out with. If you don't count that one time they were possessed by a Marowak's ghost, that is."

Out of all the unlikeliest friendships he could've imagined, Reiko getting along with someone like Sanbica had to be somewhere in the top of the list. Then again he'd been friends with Niss for most of his life, so who was he to judge.

"…Indeed, I met Barry a few days ago in Veilstone," Barry heard Sanbica say once he realized he was spacing out. "I assured him we would meet again, and here we are!" She raised her arms to the side as if wanting to give the air a hug, her loose sleeves falling down and revealing the multitude of bead bracelets adorning her wrists. "Now, do you wish to continue what we were doing back then, Barry? I'll even give you a discount for your birthday."

He felt something uncomfortable set in the pit of his stomach. He had mentioned that his birthday would be around the day of the party, but he never specified exactly when.

Was Sanbica guessing, or…

"Yeah, I'm totally down for this! I love fortune telling!" Reiko exclaimed, startling him. "Unless some grump here wants us not to have fun…"

She glared at Percy and Niss respectively, both of whom simultaneously crossed their arms and looked to the side.

"Not like I have anything better to do," the latter muttered under her breath.

As per her instructions, they all sat in a circle around Sanbica, who was busy placing a heavy black candle in the middle of it. She lit it with a match and then threw a strange powder into the wick, which turned the flame a pale, sickly blue. It didn't illuminate much, in fact it almost seemed to be absorbing the little light they could get from the bonfire into it.

At his right Lucas shifted in place, shoulders squared up and eyes set on the floor. He couldn't help but agree with his unspoken sentiment; this whole thing was beginning to freak him out a bit.

"Alright then…" said Sanbica once all preparations were complete. "If I'm not mistaken, last time you were quite eager to know your guardian star. Shall we start with that?"

There was a slight, almost unperceivable change in the atmosphere, as if the world outside their circle were fading and the sounds of chattering and laughter became more distant. Sanbica looked at each one of them directly, her expression completely serious.

Barry nodded, crossing his arms in front of him unconsciously.

"We should start counter-clockwise, since the stars are the dominion of dear Palkia," she declared, before setting her gaze on Niss. "Do you mind being the first? I'm sensing you'd want to get this over with as fast as possible."

Niss' nose flared up at her words, a sign of danger that Barry recognized too well. He feared she might say something hurtful, but instead she simply glared daggers at Sanbica and nodded.

"Good."

She spent the next thirty seconds just… staring at Niss, as if she were a mildly entertaining television show. Barry was about to ask if there was something wrong when she spoke again, startling him.

"Your guardian star is… Tauros," she declared, her voice slightly reverberating. "The stampede Pokemon."

Niss' nose crinkled slightly.

"I was expecting something a bit more…"

Sanbica raised her hand to interrupt her. She hadn't blinked in a while, and when she started speaking again that strange atmosphere swallowed their circle once more.

"Tauros are known for their stubborn nature and constant state of rage," she explained, never breaking eye contact. "They are only able to go forward, blind to all but the path they travel. Stopping them is almost impossible, since they care not for what they might have to demolish to reach their destination. They leave nothing but pain and destruction in their wake."

The air grew cold around them. Everyone's eyes turned towards Niss, who sat in place with a look as if she'd been punched in the face. They saw her rage almost in slow motion; first her eyes went wide, then her lips parted with a gasp of anger and finally she pushed herself up to her feet, free hand turned into a fist.

That's what the rest saw, at least. Barry was different; he felt it.

He couldn't stop his eyes from turning golden, and when they did the full brunt of Niss' anger hit him like a wave of heat. It pierced his skin and dug into his bones, traveling until it set on the pit of his stomach where it lit his insides up. It was the most nauseating, toxic feeling he'd ever experienced, enough to momentarily paralyze him.

 _How… how the hell can she stand this?_  The rational part of his mind asked.

Niss inhaled deeply, before saying only three words:

"Go fuck yourself."

She turned around and started walking in the opposite direction, stomping the ground beneath her feet and shoulders squared up. It was too late to stop her by the time Barry came back to his senses, eyes returning back to their normal brown.

 

* * *

 

 

If Inyssa were stomping the ground any harder she would've probably created a few earthquakes by now.

_Stupid… hex maniac… who… the fuck… does she think… she is…_

With each word she violently took a sip of her drink, until there was no longer anything inside the cup and she crushed it. She approached one of the hundreds of makeshift garbage bins around the party and threw it in there because she still had manners, thank you very much.

Hao's voice reached her from the device on her wrist.

"Ni Ni, are you okay?" he asked, frowning. "If you need to talk…"

"I'm fine," she replied coarsely. "I want to be alone."

He gave her another worried look before nodding and turning the device off. She silently thanked him, walking towards a nearby tree and laying with her back against it. The texture was rough and somewhat spiky, but that was the least of her concerns at the moment.

Sanbica's words still rang inside her mind, turning the anger sour as it swirled and stagnated inside her body. Part of her knew that she only felt this way because there was some truth in what she'd said, but it still wasn't any of her business. She hadn't done anything to her, aside from maybe looking at her the wrong way.

 _I do that to everyone I don't know_ , she rationalized.  _Does she think she's special or something? Because she's not._

"I need another drink," she whispered to herself, voice coarse.

Her eyelids felt heavy, which was odd since she wasn't feeling sleepy; she never did when she was angry as a matter of fact. Trying to shake it off she walked towards one of the nearby tables. Her fingers closed around one of the plastic cups when she heard someone talking to her.

"Yo! Niss, right!?"

Vehemently she turned around, the cup creaking as her fingers unconsciously put pressure on it.

_Not this shit again._

Some guy was waving at her from a few feet away, a dazed smile on his face. He wore a spiked leather jacket that didn't cover his midriff and there were piercing adorning his nose and ears.

He looked like the kind of guy who was part of a gang and had nicknamed his bike Melissa or Daisy or something like that.

"Yeah, that's me," she replied grimly. "What do you want?"

He stood there for a moment, as if he had trouble focusing his eyes. She figured it had something to do with the tall cup full of some kind of dark drink he held in one hand.

"Woah, it really is you…" he let out a giggle. "You're… a lot shorter than I thought."

Inyssa's eye twitched. Either the guy was drunk, really dim, or he simply didn't realize the metric fuckton of anger boiling inside the 110 pound girl in front of him. She figured it was a mix of all three.

"What. Do you want," she repeated, eyes narrowed in frustration.

"Oh right, I'm Zachary!" He introduced himself, seemingly not bothered by her cold glare. "Anyway… I saw your fight the other day, that was so rad! And then I saw you here and I was like… woah, that's the same girl! Crazy, right?"

"Yes, crazy how one person can be in two places at different points in time," she scoffed.

"See! You get it!" he smiled widely, apparently immune to her sarcasm. "So like… wanna hang out?"

That gave her pause. She raised an eyebrow, looking at him as if she expected him to be talking to someone else.

"I'm… sorry?"

"Yeah, me and my friends are just shooting the shit over there," he spun for a few seconds, until finally he pointed at a small mound between two trees. "And I was supposed to come get more drinks, but then I found you! We don't get many trainers over here and I'm sure they'd love to hang out with someone like you."

Perhaps the alcohol had finally started to clog the gears inside her brain a bit, but she genuinely had trouble understanding what she'd just heard. She stood stunned there, eyes going from the guy to the group of people in the distance, drinking and laughing and seeming like they were having a good time.

 _He… wants me there?_  She thought, incredulous.  _Someone wants me to… hang out with them?_

At first she laughed, thinking the whole thing some kinda joke. However Zachary just stood there, staring at her as if he didn't understood what was the problem. Either that or he was falling asleep on his feet.

She craned her neck back, towards the place where Barry and the rest still were talking to Sanbica. She couldn't quite go back there after throwing that temper tantrum, could she? And to just stand next to the table, awkwardly drinking until she had an excuse to leave… the possibility felt just a bit too sad now.

After a few moments of consideration she shrugged, and turned towards Zachary.

"Why the hell not," she whispered. "Just let me get another drink first."

 

* * *

 

 

Zachary's friends were… interesting, to say the least. There were three of them; the first must've been around Reiko's age, they introduced themselves as Simone with a wink and a wave of the hand holding their cigarette. They dressed in all black, and a heavy looking iron cross hung from their neck. Next to them sat a younger girl with dark skin and a round face of puffy cheeks. She muttered her name shyly, and Inyssa couldn't quite make it out. What she did notice was how much she liked her pixie cut of brightly dyed hair.

The third one was a bit weirder, since it wasn't a person. Between the two girls sat a human sized blue Pokemon with an oval shaped body, two stubby arms and the biggest aloof grin she'd ever seen. His eyes were tiny black dots, so far apart from each other that they gave him a constant look of cheery confusion.

Without asking for permission she took the Pokédex from the folds of her outfit, and pointed it at the creature:

_Quagsire: The Sluggish Pokemon – Water/Ground Type. It hunts for food by leaving its mouth wide open in water and waiting for its prey to blunder in unaware. Since it rarely moves, it does not get very hungry. One can usually find one by the sound it makes after it absentmindedly bumps its head against a rock or the hull of a ship._

She looked at the Quagsire, then at Zachary and then at the Quagsire again. She should've figured someone like him would hang out with the Pokemon equivalent of a stoner.

"Would you look at that," whispered Simone, spitting a small cloud of smoke. "Is that a real Pokédex? I've never seen one before."

"Oh! I'm… sorry," Inyssa hurriedly put it back in her pocket. "I should've asked before I did that."

Zachary sat next to Simone, waving his hand as if he found her words dumb, either that or he was swatting the smoke out of his face.

"It's okay, you don't gotta worry 'bout it," he smiled, almost spilling his drink on himself. "I'm sure Johnny doesn't mind."

Inyssa stuttered, raising an eyebrow, "J-Johnny... the Quagsire is named Johnny."

"Jigglejam Johnny, to be precise," Simone nodded lazily, "He is the coolest dude around. Been hanging out with us for years."

"And he gives the best advice!" added Zachary. "Also he can like… make the ground shake and stuff! I don't know how he does it but it's awesome."

She blinked a few times, trying to summarize the situation inside her head. She was hanging out with a group of drunk, punk stoners who idolized a Pokemon who was so dim he probably had no idea what was happening around him at any moment.

 _If only dad could see me now_ , she thought, smiling to herself.

Without much enthusiasm she sat at Zachary's side, and both him and Simone cheered and laughed while clashing their plastic cups together, spilling some alcohol on their clothes. At her right the youngest girl took her drink to her lips, clearly trying to avoid Inyssa's eyes.

"So hey, we heard a lot about you," said Simone after they finished giggling. "They say you're pretty good with Pokemon?"

She shrugged, "Well I wouldn't have three badges if I weren't, would I?"

"Yeah! Own it!" Exclaimed Zachary, not quite able of controlling the volume of his voice. "You gotta be proud that you're a badass! You're also the one who beat those Galactic assholes in Veilstone, right? That was amazing!"

Her hand froze before she could take another sip, and she felt the anger sprouting back from the pit of her stomach. In any other moment she would've probably gotten up and left, or maybe yelled at him for making her remember what had happened in Veilstone.

But having already gotten through almost two full cups of that drink… she realized the anger was somewhat muffled, as if it couldn't get through the cloud of haze slowly covering her body.

"That… that was me, yes."

The rational part of her mind asked her what the hell was she doing. Why was she bothering hanging out with these people? Why was she talking about the things that bothered her so much? What the hell was the point of the party and…

In one motion she drank the rest of the cup, drowning the voice as best she could.

It couldn't hurt to go with the flow for once, she thought. Just this time, to not care about anything, who she was or where she was.

She barely heard Zachary speak over the distant cackle of the bonfire.

"We were just talking about that and Gym leaders before I went looking for drinks," he smiled enthusiastically. "You met a few, right? Have any cool stories?"

Both him and Simone seemed interested in the idea. The remaining girl and the Quagsire weren't looking at her, but she could make out a small glimpse of curiosity in their eyes.

Slowly, she leaned forward and grabbed one of the multitude of bottles in the middle of the circle.

"Yeah…" she said as she poured herself another drink. "I think I have a couple."

 

* * *

 

 

A few moments of silence followed Niss' retreat, until Sanbica spoke again:

"Well… I was going to add that Tauros are also bad at taking criticism, though I doubt that point needs to be made anymore," she said, apparently not bothered by being insulted. "Oh well, who's next?"

Barry exchanged looks with Reiko and Percy, who seemed genuinely worried about what had just happened.

"Should we…?" asked the former.

"I… don't think she wants us around right now," replied Barry.

"Um…" Lucas began to raise his hand to speak, until he realized what he was doing and stopped himself. "Shouldn't… shouldn't these fortunes have positive things to say, too? Inyssa is not a bad person, even if she's... uh…"

The rest nodded in unison, giving Sanbica a sour look.

"Oh, they do have a positive side," she replied. "Unfortunately your friend stormed off before I could tell her."

Barry had the suspicion that she'd purposefully delayed saying those positive things because she didn't like Niss, and hoped she would get angry. He didn't say this out loud, though.

"We might as well keep going," Barry shrugged. "We'll give Niss some time to cool off and then we'll go looking for her."

None of them complained. Sanbica readied herself again and, just like she'd done with Niss, stared at Barry for almost an entire minute. He held the weight of her gaze as best he could, even though the fact they barely reflected light at all freaked him out a little bit.

"Your guardian star…" she said, imbuing her voice with that strange force, "…is Ampharos, the light Pokemon. They are said to be some of the most oblivious creatures in existence, constantly distracted by whatever catches their interest and unable to see the plight of others in front of them." Barry winced, a knot forming on his throat. "However, that does not mean they don't care. Once they realize someone needs them they'll do everything in their power to help. They are the embodiments of beacons, and the light of their tails can cut through even the deepest of darkness."

Without waiting for a reaction she turned towards Lucas, making the boy almost jump in place.

"As for you…" she narrowed her eyes, "…Ralts, the empathy Pokemon. Not only are they intelligent, but they're also able to quickly discern when someone close to them is in emotional pain, and their mere presence can help to heal them," she paused, and for a moment Lucas thought there would be no negative part of his fortune. "However, their extreme shyness and inability to properly communicate leads them to stand by and watch as those closest to them suffer."

She looked at Reiko next, whose posture was rigid and, Barry realized, somewhat anxious.

"I believe yours is quite obvious," she told her. "Vigoroth, the rampage Pokemon. Their blood runs hotter than any other creature, and they're able to complete any task they set their minds to in half the time it would take others to do so. The downside to this…" she smiled once more, "…is that they must constantly keep moving, searching for a new purpose. If they ever stop their energy will stagnate inside their body, hurting them from the inside and turning them into bloodthirsty monsters."

Finally, her eyes set on Percy. He sat as straight up as he could and challenged her with his glare, though Barry could see that his hands were slightly shaking.

"How… interesting," she said, eyebrows joining together. "Not many are born under the star of Scizor, the pincer Pokemon. It is said that only the bravest of Scyther accept to evolve, for they know that the moment they do so their friends and family might turn on them. This can lead them to a path of bitterness and self hate, or…" her lips formed the hook of a mischievous smile, and her eyes went to Reiko before returning to him, "… they might decide to strive forward, and fully accept who they are. A difficult path, but one that will gift them power and wisdom beyond imagining, should they learn to traverse it."

Silence swallowed their circle for a few moments, until Sanbica finally closed her eyes and lowered her shoulders, letting out a big sigh. Until that moment Barry hadn't noticed just how difficult it'd been for him to breathe.

He exchanged looks with the rest, and he didn't need to summon the golden eyes to know they were all somewhat shaken by what they'd heard. Sanbica seemed to notice this, because she smiled warmly and put one hand over the fire of the candle, turning it back to the orange and yellow it was before.

"I'm guessing that wasn't what you expected to hear."

_Gee, you think?_

"It was… interesting," said Reiko, through a pained smile.

Sanbica nodded, "I know these things might be difficult to hear, but remember that no Pokemon or human is perfect, and as flawed as your star might be, they will always act as your protectors." Her tone had changed into one of levity, as if she'd taken a huge weight off her chest. "There have even been rumors of heroes who've been able to summon their own guardian star in battle, though even I have trouble believing something like that."

None of them replied, too busy thinking over what they'd just heard. Sanbica kept gathering her supplies and putting them inside a dingy looking bag next to her. After a while she extended her palm forward, and each of them paid for her services.

"Now, go along," she made a gesture with her palm, as if shooing birds. "I have many other clients to attend to, and I'm sure you've got your own plans for tonight, haven't you?"

Barry gulped, his gaze going towards the direction in which Niss had disappeared to only a few minutes before.

"Yeah… we do."

 

* * *

 

 

Both Inyssa's tongue and her grasp on the world around her started to loosen the more she drank.

It was a slow and gradual thing, her restraint and inhibitions vanishing with every little sip without her realizing. A bubbly, light feeling replaced the fire in her stomach, making her raise her voice when she didn't intend to and giggle uncontrollably for no reason a few times. And if she were standing up, she would've noticed her sense of balance had deteriorated, and maybe she would've connected the dots there. But sitting down with that strange group of people and for the first time sharing her actual self like she did with the members of her team… deep down she knew she didn't want to.

"…and then, and then he says… we gotta combine our attacks!" she exclaimed, trying to imitate Barry's tone. "And you can imagine my face because… what the fuck did that mean, am I right!? But then all our Pokemon throw their fire and water and leaves and shit, and then…" she shook her head, grinning from ear to ear. "Then he just tells his Kadabra to put all that stuff together, and he does!"

A small, collective gasp was heard, though when she turned her head to see who that was her vision blurred. Apparently Zachary and Simone were staring intently at her, with funny looks of concentration on their faces.

"How did he do that?" asked the former, slurring his words.

"Turns out you just gotta have a psychic Pokemon and it's easy peasy," she said, laughing at her own phrasing. "You just… mash it all together, like a salad. When all the stuff combined it was like… a tornado! But with the mouth pointing forward and made of pretty lights. It sounded like…"

She formed an  _O_  with her mouth and exhaled strongly, trying to imitate the sound she remembered from the trial in Hearthome. Unfortunately she barely got through the second  _swoosh_  before she burst into laughter, leaning forward and putting one hand over her stomach. She heard the rest laugh as well, even the young girl next to her.

"That guy must be a riot to hang out with," said Zachary.

Niss struggled to smile, "Y-yeah. He's the best friend you could…"

For a moment her mind resurfaced through the thick mist of soporifics, and her smile dropped dead. What was she doing? It was Barry's birthday, her best friend's birthday… why wasn't she with him? Why wasn't she laughing with him and hugging him and…

She would've come back to her senses that moment, were it not for Simone, who distracted her as they started speaking.

"Man…" they sighed dreamily. "Wish I got a Pokemon when I was eighteen. I would've loved to be a trainer and do crazy shit like that."

Inyssa blinked a few times, tilting her head to the side.

"What do you mean? Why couldn't you get one?"

"Didn't have the money or the time," they said. "'Cause that's' the way it is on this bitch of an earth."

Zachary nodded and raised his cup to her statement, "Amen, pal."

She stuttered a bit, her voice starting to get slurry, "And y'… uh… you had a job or something?"

"One? Nah, I wasn't so lucky," they laughed, the ash on the tip of their cigarette falling to their leg. "I did some freelance tattooing on the side and I worked in this shitty department store. At least until one of the managers started getting handsy and HR chose to believe him instead of me. I packed my bags and got the fuck out of there."

"Wish I could've been there with you," Zachary scoffed. "If anyone deserved a crowbar to the face it was that guy."

"Saaair," the Quagsire nodded, probably unaware of what anyone was saying.

Simone shot her friends a warm smile before looking down at the ground, "I agree, but that would've only caused more trouble for me. Don't want my old boss poisoning my future work opportunities." Sighing, they raised their head and spat a small circle of smoke. "Gotta take care of my little sis, and I can't do that if I'm unemployed."

The air around them became heavy, or so Inyssa thought, could've just been the alcohol. She looked down at her own drink, thinking of what to say. She hadn't even considered that some people didn't have their parents to pay for their journey and trainer commodities.

A memory came to mind. She was young, no more than fourteen. Shadi had come back halfway through her own journey and was doing her best to take care not only of her but their mother as well, after she had a breakdown on the anniversary of her husband's death. Inyssa remembered the way her sister looked at them; beneath all the smiles and kind words bubbled a bitterness only she could see.

She couldn't blame her. Shadi was one of the most talented trainers in the region and there she was, stuck in her own house, having to take care of someone as worthless as her. Inyssa looked down, fingers grasping the cup just a little too tight, and tried her best not to let her eyes start to water.

"I'm… sorry to hear that," she whispered.

Simone must've noticed her expression. They wiped off the frown off their face and smiled.

"Ah, sorry for being a downer," they said, rubbing the back of their neck. "You don't have to worry 'bout me. I'm working on getting my own tattoo parlor next to the docks. Lots of sailors come in and out, so I won't have to worry about money so much anymore."

"Simone's really good," added Zachary. "Here, look."

Simultaneously, both of them pulled up the sleeves of their shirt, showing her their left and right arm respectively. Under their shoulder there were similar tattoos; Simone's was of a grimly looking Umbreon, his eyes a shining red and wisps of darkness surrounding him. Zachary's was a beautiful Espeon, her fur glowing with strands of light. They both looked up at the moon, which was full on Simone's side and new on Zachary's.

"It's… beautiful," Inyssa whispered, mouth slightly gaping.

"To remind us that there's always some kind of beacon or light to guide us," Simone smiled knowingly. "Even when shit's rough, and if you can get through it things will start looking up, like with my shop. Hell, I might even be able to pay for my little sis to go on her own journey!"

"That way she and Rory could start together," nodded Zachary. "Since they're the same age and shit."

Their eyes went for a moment to the young girl next to Inyssa, and she realized that must've been her name. Taking a closer look she noticed that she was, like Barry, drinking only soda, which would've explained why she wasn't quite as inebriated as any of them.

In any other circumstance she would've left the matter alone and gone back to talk to Simone and Zachary, but she was curious as to why Rory wasn't speaking to her, and why she occasionally shot her a strange, grim look.

"So… you wanna be a trainer?" she asked, trying to sound cheery. "That's cool. You think you have what it takes?"

She intended her comment to be a friendly jab, something for both of them to laugh over. However, judging by the way Rory's eyebrows formed a line over the bridge of her nose, she figured her question wasn't appreciated.

"Well…" she said, pursing her lips, "...not according to you."

Inyssa stared blankly, tilting her head to the side. The circle had grown strangely silent for some reason.

"Wh-what do you mean?"

Rory formed a crooked smile that didn't extend to her eyes, "I guess I didn't leave enough of an impression for you to remember me, with how much of a star trainer you are."

She was taken aback by the way she'd spat those words out, as if they were something stuck in her teeth. Again she simply stared, not knowing what to do or say, not even aware of what the conversation was about anymore. Rory must've realized this; she elaborated a moment after.

"A couple days ago, in that café. You're the one who told me to fuck off."

Inyssa leaned back, her posture like that of a wilting flower. She opened her mouth to speak, but there were no words left in her, not with the confusion and sudden realization replacing them. Vague images of a memory resurfaced, blurry and not quite there, but still she was able to remember.

Her face turning red, she noticed that everyone was staring at her. Frowning, raising eyebrows… even Johnny seemed somewhat displeased.

"That… was you?" asked Simone, their tone carrying a clear, underlying anger behind them. "You're the one who said that to Rory?"

Panic and shame rose to her throat like bile, which would've explained why she couldn't muster a single word as she stammered. She felt the scalding eyes of the three of them on her, and shook under their weight. A part of her mind, the one that until then had been silenced by the alcohol, asked her why she cared.

 _You don't even know these people_ , the voice whispered to her.  _Who cares if they get mad at you? You're going to be the Champion, you don't have to feel bad for idiots like th-_

"No…"

She drowned the stupid voice as best she could, kicking and scratching and pushing it as deep into her own mind as she was able to, where it wouldn't bother her again. She was sick of being angry and resentful, sick of carrying that horrible poison inside her veins that turned them to flames the moment something bothered her. She wasn't going to let it ruin this like it'd ruined so many other things before.

Swallowing, she gathered her courage and looked up to meet their eyes. Rory was frowning, angry as she should be, while Simone and Zachary waited for her to speak.

So she did.

"I'm… I'm sorry," she said, letting her shoulders drop. "I was really, really angry that day, and people kept making rumors about me and wanted to talk with me and… I shouldn't have said that, and I'm sorry."

She pushed the words out as best she could, even if they were slurred and sometimes unfinished. Next to her Rory perked up her nose to reply, but she spoke again. She wasn't done.

"I don't wanna make it look like I'm making excuses. I know I've been acting like a jerk and you didn't deserve that," she said, blinking rapidly. The voice tried to break itself free, complaining loudly at what she was saying, but she managed to keep it down. "I'm just… sometimes I get really angry, and I stay that way for a long time. It's not like…" she struggled, trying to find the right words. "It's not… normal. The anger shouldn't stay for hours or days, but it does. And I get tired of feeling like that all the time and I say bad things to people…"

She was forced to take a breath, realizing she'd been speaking so fast she'd run out of air. They were still looking at her, but in a different way. Even Rory seemed more surprised than crossed about what she was saying.

"And… I know that doesn't jest…jurf… justify how I act.," Inyssa added once she breathed in. "I shouldn't have treated you like that, and I'm sorry."

She pretty much deflated after she finished speaking, as if she were a balloon filled with helium. Her face and cheeks felt hot for some reason, and she could hear her own heartbeat in her ears.

Staring was all she could do while swallowing her fear. Had she said too much? Not enough? She couldn't make head or tails of the expressions in everyone's faces. The panic was almost too much to handle by the time one of them spoke; Zachary leaned forward and patted her shoulder, a tiny smile stretched across his lips.

"Hey man, it happens," he said gloomily. "Shit's rough sometimes."

"At least you know what you did wrong," nodded Simone.

Rory kept her lips pursed for a few moments, before cracking up slightly, pressing one hand over her mouth. The gleam of hostility in her eyes had all but banished.

"To be honest I wasn't that mad about it," she shrugged. "But I thought you were a jerk and I wanted to put you on the spot. I was wrong, so sorry for that."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Inyssa leaned back to her original position, placing her back against one of the trees. She had no idea why she was so happy all of a sudden, but decided not to question it.

"It's okay, I deserved it," she admitted. "Thanks for understanding. I'm… trying to get better, even if it doesn't seem like it."

"We're all trying, pal," Simone said. "And a few bumps in the road ain't gonna do shit to stop us."

They shared a round of smiles for a moment, before Zachary grabbed the bottle once more and poured in a drink for those whose cups were empty. He then carefully pushed himself to his feet (legs wobbling) and raised his own to the middle of the circle.

"Another toast!" he cried out, and next to him Simone rolled their eyes with a smile.

Blushing, Inyssa tried to follow his example, although it seemed her legs were even less responsive than his at the moment. If it weren't for the help of Rory she would've gone face first into the dirt.

"I… I've never made friends this fast before," she whispered, almost to herself.

"It gets easier the more you practice," said Simone. "Alright then, let's include Johnny on this too…"

They were all standing now, even the Quagsire with his vacant, goofy expression. Everyone raised their cups, some with more difficulty than others, and waited as Zachary thought of what to say.

"How about…" he whispered. "A toast to new friends!"

"And alcohol," Simone added.

Rory smiled excitedly, "And the future!"

"Saaair!" Johnny contributed.

Inyssa thought about it for a few seconds, and with a wistful smile she took a step forward to clash her cup with the rest.

"And for chang _—_!"

As soon as she took a step forward to extend her arm, she felt the ground beneath her shift and wave, as if she were standing on quicksand. She panicked, letting the cup fall to the ground, and threw her arms to the side as balance left her body completely. She took a heavy step back, and the sole of her shoe slipped on a patch of slightly wet grass.

Her shoulder clashing with the ground was the last thing Inyssa remembered of that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay on this chapter. Since I'm going vacationing soon the schedule will go back to one chapter every two weeks until further notice.


	37. One Step Forward, One Tumble Back

Inyssa woke up certain that someone had lit a box of firecrackers inside her skull.

She looked up at the ceiling of the poorly illuminated room, feeling something heavy and wet on top of her forehead. A few minutes passed in that stupor until she turned her head to the side and saw Barry sitting in a nearby chair, reading a magazine that looked like a comic book. His anxious fingers fidgeted on the corners of the pages.

"Barry… I think died."

Her voice, rough as sandpaper, startled him. He lowered the magazine to his lap strongly, relief flickering across those big, brown eyes of his. The corner of his mouth quirked up.

"Not until you become the Champion and pay me that million dollars I fined you."

It took her a few minutes to get used to the world turning into a dizzying blur every time she moved her head. With difficulty she managed to sit against the frame of the bed while Barry got her some water to wash down the taste of alcohol and shame off her throat.

She didn't feel quite  _there_  yet, as strange as it sounded inside her head. This wasn't like waking up after Enma left her or after Mars beat her up, there was no invisible poison clawing through her veins in an attempt to paralyze her. She was fine, other than her pounding headache and the ache in her muscles. That was kind of the point. For once all the pain was only physical, and she was grateful for that.

"What the hell happened last night?" she asked after downing a bottle of water.

Barry grimaced in one of those specific ways that only she could understand.

"How much do you remember?"

"Uh… until, I fell, I think." She rubbed the back of her head, noticing a small bump there. "Did I pass out?"

"You'd be in the hospital if you had." Barry shook his head disapprovingly. "We saw it, you know. We were just looking for you with Reiko, Percy and Lucas when we saw you fall to the floor like a sack of potatoes."

"Come on, I'm sure I was more graceful than that."

A smile came easy to her, though she didn't understand why. By all means she should be dying of shame, horrified that everyone had seen her embarrass herself in such a way. And yet… she literally didn't have the energy to care at the moment.

It felt incredibly liberating.

"You did a flop in the air like a drunk ballerina," Barry smirked.

She raised one hand weakly and punched his leg.

"Don't make fun of your poor, bedridden best friend," she whispered, feigning frailty.

"I mean, it wasn't funny at the time. Those guys you were hanging out with were super worried and… it almost got pretty ugly," he said, nibbling on his lower lip. "Reiko thought they'd been coercing you to drink and almost punched the guy in the mouth, until you told us everything was okay. At least… I think that's what you said. It wasn't easy to understand you when half the words you said sounded like they were from a different language."

She tried to imagine that scenario, along with her friends' confusion, and she couldn't help but laugh. What was happening? Why wasn't she feeling bad about it?

"Reiko didn't fight them, did she? They're super nice and didn't do anything to me."

"Yeah, you told us. After that you didn't want us to go so we just… hung out for a while," he shrugged. "It was fun, and you're right in that they're nice peeps. But after a while I brought you back because I was worried."

It could've been a lot worse, Inyssa thought. At least she hadn't caused any strife and –hopefully– she still remained on good terms with Zachary and the rest. So what if the price had been a bit of drunk humiliation on her part?

She shook her head slightly, placing a hand against her forehead. What was she…?

"So… what else did I do?" she asked, and noticing the confusion on Barry's face she added: "I mean, I'm sure I did a lot more stupid shit. I'd just like to have a log of it all so I can read it later and weep with horror."

Barry let out an  _'Oh boy'_  and leaned back into his chair while Inyssa tried to pay attention to all her drunk transgressions against common sense.

Apparently she'd invited all her Pokemon to hang out with them, and at one point tried to dance with Shadi, not remembering that her arms were literal scythes and as such not something she should grab onto. She tried to climb a tree, though her poor physical state and lack of coordination landed her on the ground a few times. She hugged Reiko and apologized to her at least twenty times for being previously angry at her. She flirted with Simone and then stopped because she felt embarrassed, and she spent an unreasonable amount of time telling everyone how cool and amazing Barry was.

He blushed as he told her that last part. The worst part for Inyssa was being absolutely certain that he wasn't lying.

Still, as much as she tried to listen her mind began to slowly drift away, eyes turning a pale, almost sickly green as her gaze became distant.

Why was she okay with all of this? There was no anger to summon, no more poison to cloud her judgment. The only thing wrong with her was the piercing, disorienting pain of her body failing her. She shouldn't be happy about that, and yet she was.

She looked down at her hands while the sound of Barry's voice faded around her. As much as she wanted to hate her past self for drinking too much, all she remembered from that night was that feeling of pure bliss. Like nothing in the world could possibly be wrong, like all the broken, jagged pieces of herself fit perfectly for once.

She found herself missing that feeling, and that's when panic hit her. A familiar image flashed in front of her. A fragile, miserable woman laying on her bed, surrounded by empty bottles. Her eyes faded, devoid of any care in the world.

Inyssa felt a sudden urge to get off the bed and run towards the bathroom's mirror. Would she look the same as her? Would her eyes be just as empty?

Fear tried to break through the hard shell of apathy built around her, though it only managed to shake her mind a little. Was this what her mother felt every day? It would've been easy to block everything out that way, Inyssa thought. Her husband's death, her oldest daughter's disappearance. The unbridled hate from her youngest and her escape from her own home…

She desperately tried to convince herself that she wasn't anything like Johanna, that never in a million years would she become the same as her. But then again… had she not tried to escape the pain too, back then? In a more drastic way, a more permanent one. If she'd known about this feeling, about how easily she could get rid of all the hurt and anger by only sacrificing part of her wellbeing…

She wasn't sure she would've chosen differently from her mother. That doubt was enough to finally crack part of her armor, and all of a sudden she felt like throwing up.

"Niss? Hey, Niss!"

The world came back into focus with a jolt. Barry was staring at her, his forehead creased.

"Y-yeah?"

"You look…" he hesitated for a moment, "…pale. Do you feel fine?"

"Yeah, I'm good," she said blankly. "Thirsty. Do you mind getting some more water?"

He nodded and left the room a few seconds later. With a strange sense of urgency Inyssa grabbed the Pokétch from the bed table and turned it on. Hao's floating body appeared first; he seemed to be sleeping, judging by his closed eyes and loud snores. Ignoring that, she opened the message app and stared at the white screen for far longer than she should have.

Her fingers pressed strongly against the edges of the device, and the faintest spark of anger had resurfaced from the depths of her stomach. She knew it would happen sooner or later, and wanted to write the text before it took over.

 _No_ , she thought with conviction.  _We're not… I'm not going to go back to that._

What had happened last night wasn't the answer, she knew that better than anyone. But it'd been a start, a strong jolt that had allowed her to be someone different for a few hours. She wanted that feeling back, but knew that she would need to achieve that through work and effort instead of by emptying a bottle.

_I'm stronger than her._

For the first time, she didn't feel angry at that realization. She felt pity, and something else that reminded her of better days, when she could hug and smile at her mother without dread and fury paralyzing her.

_I have to be the bigger person._

With trembling fingers she began to type. At first it came easy enough, though when she got to the end of the text it felt like trying to write through a block of cement in her stomach.

After a full minute she finished it, and before she had a chance to regret it she hit the  _Send_  button. The words appeared on the white screen:

_Hi, mom! It's me, Niss, I just wanted to know how you were doing._

_We're in Pastoria right now with Barry and a few friends. It's beautiful here, I'll see if I can send you a few pictures when I have time._

_I already have three badges, and I'm about to get my fourth. You'll never believe it, but Crasher Wake is the Gym leader. I know you're not a fan of wrestling but I think it's pretty cool. I want to take a selfie with him once I beat him._

_I'll talk to you more when I get the badge. I hope you're not having too rough a time over there. I'll come back to visit when I can, but for now I gotta go._

_I love you._

She read it one last time and put the device back on top of the table, as if it were about to bite her. She knew there was a chance of her regretting her actions later, but as far as she was concerned  _future her_  could go fuck herself. If she wanted to improve then she had to take any advantage she could.

Trying to distract herself she looked around the room, and noticed her coat and belt full of Pokeballs hanging from a nearby chair at the other side of the bed. The sight of them brought an involuntary smile to her face, and she felt as if the air she was breathing became clearer. All six of them were still th-

Her smile dropped dead.

_S-six?_

Why… why where there six? She'd broken Hao's Pokeball back in Veilstone, hadn't she?

The door opened then, startling her. Barry came in with a bottle of water on one hand and a small bag of biscuits on the other. The bag was opened, and his cheeks were puffed like those of a Pachirisu.

"Hey, Barry…"

"Hhm?" he perked up his nose, swallowing. "What is it?"

"Did you accidentally give me one of your Pokeballs?" she pointed at the belt. "There's six of them."

Barry raised an eyebrow, as if he didn't understand the question.

"Niss, I told you that already," he smiled. "Did you doze off or something?"

"T-told me what?" she asked hesitantly, sitting up straight against the frame of her bed.

"That… weird Pokemon, the blue one you and those people were hanging out with…" He pointed at the sixth Pokeball, "…you caught him, remember?"

Inyssa's jaw dropped, and her eyes went wide as plates.

"I did  _WHAT_!?"

 

* * *

 

 

"And… you're sure you're okay with this?"

Inyssa spoke to the screen of her Pokétch, at the other side of which Simone showed her a patient smile. She'd decided to contact them as soon as possible, even if she was still bedridden and her head practically burst open with pain. In the chair next to her bed, Barry had pressed a hand against his mouth to stifle laughter.

"I told you, it's all good," said Simone with a wave of their hand. "He's the one who wanted you to catch him, remember?"

Inyssa crinkled her nose and looked down, heat rising to her cheeks. She had absolutely no idea how the whole thing had transpired.

"But… isn't he your friend? Aren't you and Zachary going to miss him?"

"The only thing Zach would be missing right around now is a bottle of painkillers," Simone chuckled. "He got even more hammered than you, poor guy's gonna be laying down for a while."

She tried to speak up again, but Simone interrupted her by raising their hand.

"It's okay, Niss, seriously." She somewhat recoiled at the sound of someone else using that nickname. Had she… had she told them to use it last night? "Johnny's… kind of weird, but he's been a good friend to us when we were down. Now that we're all making it on our own, he must've decided that you needed him more than us."

An odd discomfort grew inside Inyssa's chest. She shifted uncomfortably on the bed and unconsciously tried to make herself smaller.

"Alright… but you guys can call me and talk to him whenever you want. I'll also bring him back to visit once in a while."

She couldn't shake off the image of her as the Quagsire's divorced mother, making arrangements for him to meet the rest of his parents every weekend or so. A smile broke through her efforts to hide it.

"I'm sure we'll miss him plenty, but he's the one who wanted to go with you," said Simone. "Besides, I reckon he'd be pretty useful to you. For battling and all that."

Inyssa's eyes went wide. She hadn't considered that at all. Indeed, as much as she didn't like water types she needed to catch one sooner or later, and the Quagsire's secondary ground type along with his beefy defenses would fit in her team perfectly.

"I… think I could make that work," Inyssa smirked, a dozen battle plans running through her head already. "He'll need some training though. I'll start on that as soon as I can get out of bed."

She looked at Barry, who leered back with a look of  _'That's not happening until I'm absolutely sure you're feeling better.'_

"Well, whenever you're ready to fight Crasher Wake let us know! We'll be there to cheer for you," Simone smiled. "Though now I gotta go to work, so we'll talk later! I hope you get better soon!"

With a  _blip_  her face disappeared from the screen, which returned to the familiar sight of a snoring Hao. Her lips slowly pursed, and the faintest spark of an idea began to form on the back of her mind.

Ignoring that for the time being, she lowered her wrist and leaned back onto the frame of the bed, letting out a sigh.

"I guess Wrathia and Auri will get a new training partner," she said, looking up at Barry.

"Why don't you let him out now?" he said. "That way you can start getting to know each other."

She nodded, and hesitantly grabbed what she knew to be his Pokeball, judging by how new and shiny it looked. She moved it between her fingers for a moment, feeling its weight, and let it open with a flash of light.

The Quagsire appeared in the middle of the room, his tiny eyes as dazed and his smile as aloof as she remembered from last night. It took him a few seconds to realize he was out of the Pokeball. He moved his head slightly to the right and left, and then stared directly at his new trainer.

"Saair," he said, opening his mouth wide.

Inyssa hesitated for a moment. How was she supposed to introduced herself so a Pokemon like him?

"Hey there…" she waved weakly, "…I guess your name is Johnny? It'd be rude to change it now so I guess that's what I'm gonna call you. Definitely not gonna use the Jigglejam part because that's just stupid."

Johnny didn't blink, and Inyssa didn't know if he was even listening to her.

"Er… anyway," she stammered, trying to get the words out. "I'm your trainer now, and I hope we can work together from now on. I'll introduce you to the rest of the team later, alright? All you'll need to do is work hard and I'm sure you'll be a great asset."

She offered him her hand to shake. At first the Quagsire didn't react at all, and Inyssa feared he might've fallen asleep with his eyes open. However, after a few seconds, he raised his short fin of a hand and bopped her on the nose.

She could hear Barry cackling next to her, and with her cheeks turning red she tried her best not to do the same.

"Alright then… I guess your aim's the first thing we'll have to work on."

 

* * *

 

 

A few bottles of water, one Ibuprofen and several instances of Poochyena eyes against Barry later and she was as good as… well, as good as she would ever be considering how little she took care of herself. Certainly good enough to start training again, which she did as soon as the world stopped spinning around her with each step she took.

However, it wasn't all roses and Pecha berries. It became apparent after a few hours of training that Johnny would need some time to catch up to the rest of his teammates.

Not that he was weak, far from it, as Inyssa discovered when he made the ground shake and crumble with a single stomp of his foot. A reasonable amount of power was hidden in that chubby, soft body of his, the problem was that he didn't know how to use it optimally. He was slower than a Shuckle, dimmer than a pitch black room and it took him an unreasonable three seconds to perform each attack.

On the positive side, it was extremely hard to take him down. As much as Steven and Shadi had tried to weaken him the Quagsire absorbed damage like a sponge on water. By the time they managed to defeat him they were so out of breath they couldn't fight anymore.

Bret was the only one who had no difficulty winning against him, as his grass attacks were incredibly effective on the poor thing.

"Now now, don't get so cocky," Inyssa said, patting the Roselia on the head. "You're not gonna fight someone four times weak against you every day, you know."

A sly smile formed on Bret's face, and she could see him raise an eyebrow expectantly.

"Oh?" Inyssa smiled back. "You think you're that good? You think you could defeat Crasher Wake on your own, big guy?"

Bret didn't respond. Instead he turned around and started walking away. After a few seconds he stopped, took in a deep breath and raised both rose covered hands to the sides.

"What are you-?"

She exhaled sharply; she recognized that pose.

Bret took one perfect step forward, and began to dance.

Less than a minute later, Inyssa stared dumfounded at the cracked and uprooted circle of earth in front of her. Clouds of dust still floated all around them and a couple of threes had been toppled violently to the sides. It looked like a hurricane had just passed by.

"Wh-when… when did you learn…?"

Bret's legs failed him and he fell to his knees, breathing heavily. The green of his body looked paler, and the roses on his hands had lost a surprising amount of petals. Even so, he looked to the side, towards his trainer, and showed her that same sly smile once more.

And just like before, Inyssa shone it back to him.

"I guess I know how we're gonna take him down tomorrow."

 

* * *

 

 

The day of their battle came without much fanfare, which in a way might've helped their chances.

The crowd cheered, the commentators screamed, and Inyssa wished they would all shut the fuck up a bit so she could concentrate on the damn fight.

"Keep it up with Leech Seed!"

Her yell reached Bret, who nodded and jumped into the air, pushing himself up with one of his vines against the floating platforms of the arena. His opponent flew just under him, covered in a coat of swirling water.

Turning around mid air, he saw the Floatzel dive into the water once more. His dark shape moved through the pool like a bullet, and he knew there wasn't much chance of hitting him with that kind of speed.

He smiled to himself. It was a good thing that hitting him wasn't the plan.

Pointing with both arms below he shot a handful of small, brown seeds that rained all around the pool. None of them hit Floatzel, who had gotten tired of waiting and now lined himself up to jump up at his opponent. Bret could make out his gleaming yellow eyes and the bright orange of his fur even while underwater.

The commentator's voices resounded around him.

" _Is this going to be the end for Inyssa once more!? Both combatants have their last Pokemon out, but it doesn't seem like that Roselia has a chance to hit his opponent!"_

" _Indeed, I would be inclined to count this one as a loss already."_

Inyssa smiled brightly at their words. If only they knew…

"Use Magical Leaf!"

"Counter with Quick Attack!"

Bret Joined both arms together and shot down a torrent of glowing, sharp leaves. His opponent shot upwards from the water like a jet, and in mid air dodged every single projectile as if it were the easiest thing in the world. In a blink of the eye he was gone, and before Bret could react he felt a heavy impact on his back, and plummeted down towards the pool. The impact against one of the platforms knocked the wind out of him, barely avoiding knocking him out.

"Was that all, missy? This wasn't any different from our last match!" Crasher Wake yelled at Inyssa, earning cheers from the audience. "I would've expected a trainer like you to at least have half a mind to try harder!"

Floatzel fell elegantly into the platform in front of his trainer, his bright teeth forming a mocking smile. Wake mirrored this, his eyes gleaming with the confidence of someone convinced of their victory.

The same gleam that was on Inyssa's eyes that very moment.

"Half a mind?" she chortled. "Judging by how blind you and your Pokemon are I'd wager you two don't even make up a quarter of one!"

Without waiting for a response she threw her hand forward, and gave the command:

"Bret! Grass Knot!"

Wake raised an eyebrow, and she knew exactly what he was thinking. How was Bret going to use that attack when he had no solid ground to place his hands against?

The Roselia closed his eyes, deep in concentration, and a moment after dozens of vines exploded upwards all around the arena.

"Wha-! How…!" Crasher Wake took a step back, mouth gaping. "Floatzel, try to…!"

But it was too late, and his Pokemon had been too startled to react. More than thirty vines shot all across the room towards him, coiling around his limbs and lifting him high into the air with the strength of iron chains.

"Didn't you see, Wake?" Inyssa raised her palm, her lips forming the mocking hook of a smile. "All those failed attempts at using Leech Seed… I guess you didn't consider the vines inside could be triggered remotely?"

He shot her a grim look, balling his fists.

"Floatzel! Cut them up!"

The fox' twin tails started glowing with energy, and Inyssa knew they didn't have more than a couple seconds until he freed himself. He hadn't received any damage so far; there was no way a single Magical Leaf could finish the job. But she had an idea as to what might.

"Bret, NOW!"

He closed his eyes, and time seemed to stop as he moved. First he took that delicate step forward, and a moment after he spun in place, not too fast nor too slow. His rose covered hands left a floating trail of petals with every movement they made. They stayed frozen in the air, as if held by an invisible thread, and soon created a thick cloud of red and blue that detailed with perfection each step in the Pokemon's complex and beautiful dance.

He stopped just before reaching the end of the platform, and finally opened his eyes. Looking up he set his gaze on his opponent, who had already begun to break free from his thorny bonds. He parted his lips and blew a miniscule gust of wind forward, releasing the attack.

The petals, now free, began to circle all around him. Soon Bret was the eye of the storm, standing in the middle of a wide, raging maelstrom of razor sharp petals that traveled like bullets towards Floatzel. It engulfed him completely, severing all the bonds keeping him in place, and threw him upwards like a ragdoll. Like a paper tiger inside a tornado.

Unable to even move, he spun and spun in the middle of the air while the petals dug into his skin. Bret stared from below, only ordering the attack to cease when he saw his opponent fall unconscious. The projectiles stopped moving once more, and after a moment fell as petals should, slowly and methodically. Floatzel had no such luck; his body hit the pool with a sonorous splash, sinking to the bottom before his trainer could retrieve him back into his Pokeball.

Wake hesitantly lowered the arm holding it, eyes meeting with his opponent. They exchanged a knowing look and a fleeting smile, and he nodded.

Inyssa seemed to deflate from relief alone. She took a heavy step back, breathed in and raised her fist to the sky, victorious.

The audience exploded in cheers, followed by the muffled voices of the commentators.

" _I cannot believe my eyes, folks! Inyssa has just earned herself the Fen badge with the help of that terrifying strategy! What even was that attack!?"_

" _That was Petal Dance, a highly damaging and very complicated move to execute. I'm surprised a simple Roselia could pull it off."_

" _Well Matchstick, after all we've seen I'd say that surprising is falling a bit short to describe these trainers, don't you think!?"_

" _Yes… I suppose you're right, Melissa."_

Their voices faded into that of the audience and, down below on the almost empty arena, an exhausted yet satisfied smile flashed across Inyssa's face.

 

* * *

 

 

Having their badge cases halfway filled up put a spring on Inyssa's and Barry's step for the rest of their time in Pastoria.

Unfortunately, that wasn't much. With the end of the month approaching, they only had a couple days to make it to Celestic before the Festival of Spirit began. They'd both agreed that they were not going to miss such a spectacular event, especially when it was being rumored that the Champion herself would make an appearance. Their plan was to spend the day in the town and then fly towards Floaroma, where they could visit Bertha's grave and from there take a boat to the location of their next Gym battle: Canalave City.

Lucas was also heading there, as he told them just before boarding a cruise ship on the docks of Pastoria. Professor Rowan was supposed to attend a scientific convention held in the city's hall building, and that would be the perfect opportunity to show him the project he'd been working on. It also didn't hurt that there lied one of the biggest and most impressive libraries in the whole world, something that even Inyssa and Barry were interested to visit if they had the chance.

She hung out one last time with Zachary, Simone and Rory, and let Johnny the Quagsire properly say goodbye to all of them. There were a few tears here and there, which utterly baffled her, but she managed to keep her mouth shut for once. In the end they exchanged numbers and she promised them she'd message them once in a while.

The problem –at least to Inyssa– was with Reiko and Percy, who would head out towards Snowpoint soon to get their seventh badge. And she couldn't quite have that happen yet.

She'd been thinking her fair share the past few days, slowly ruminating on an idea she had during her time being hung over. At first she had considered it ludicrous and chastised herself for even thinking about it, but the more and more it simmered in the folds of her brain the more it began to make sense. She didn't want it to, because it would mean losing yet another friend, but…

 _It's the right thing to do_ , that nagging voice inside her head wouldn't stop saying. She could swear it had gotten louder ever since the night of the party.

So, after a lot of debating with herself –which she was sure looked quite odd from the outside, as evidenced by Barry's concerned expression every time it happened– she finally decided to go with it. The day before Reiko left she told her to meet her on the outskirts of town, where no one could hear their conversation.

"What is it?" Reiko asked once the two of them were alone. "I swear if you apologize to me one more time I'm gonna slap you so hard your neck will spin like a Hoothoot's."

"It's not that!" she hurried to say. "It's… it's about Team Galactic, and Charon."

Reiko's shoulders tensed up at the sound of that name. Her eyebrows formed a grim line over the bridge of her nose.

"What about them?"

Inyssa's wrist itched under the weight of the Pokétch, and she had to stop herself from touching it.

"I know… someone that might help you find them," she declared, voice firm. "Someone whom Charon created himself. And he's as eager to punish the man as you are."

Reiko fell silent, a shadow of a doubt flashing across her eyes, "And who would that be?"

Hesitantly, she raised her hand in front of her chest and spoke.

"Hao, you can show yourself now."

 

* * *

 

 

It took about five minutes for Reiko to stop freaking out and for Inyssa to explain, by the time of which Hao was almost exasperated enough to electrocute everyone around him.

"So that's the Pokemon you used against Fantina!" Reiko slapped herself on the forehead, letting out a nervous laugh. "I knew there was something weird about it!"

"You know it's rude to talk about someone when they're right in front of you," Hao's avatar raised an eyebrow, arms crossed.

"Ah shit, sorry."

Reiko gulped, and then looked at Inyssa with a half-witted grin. It wasn't hard to notice that she was still struggling to make sense of the situation in front of her.

"And… you're telling me that Charon created him?" she asked, voice faint. "And you want him to come with me?"

Hao looked up at Inyssa as well, as if waiting for her to reply to that question. She didn't want to, if it were up to her selfish desires she would've never told Reiko any of this.

She felt the weight of Johnny's Pokeball on her belt, and frowned. Just like him, Hao deserved to follow his own path, and she was keeping him away from it. She was…

"I'm… too weak to help him find Charon," she confessed, cheeks turning red. "I promised him I'd go after Team Galactic, but after what happened in Veilstone… I don't know if I'm ready yet," she looked up to Reiko with a sad smile. "But… I feel like you are. Your Pokemon are a lot stronger than mine, and you're two badges away from being able to take on the Sinnoh League. Hao would be much better off going with you."

There was a long stretch of silence in which she felt the heavy gaze of both Reiko and Hao on her. She avoided them by looking down, her hands playing with each other in front of her stomach.

"Kiddo…" Reiko said finally, "…I'm gonna ask you one last time. Are you sure?"

She choked on the words the first time, but managed to get them out with a bit of effort and patience.

"Y-yeah. I'm sure."

Reiko looked down to Inyssa's wrist, "And how about you?"

Hao shrugged, trying to sound casual, "If she's okay with it, then so am I."

"…Alright then."

That's all that needed to be said. With a simple command Hao jumped out of her Pokétch and traveled towards Reiko's. And even though she knew it was impossible, she could've sworn her wrist felt lighter and colder.

"Well, that's… all, I guess," she shrugged haphazardly. "I hope you two can find–"

Before she could finish her sentence she was pulled into a bear hug by Reiko's massive arms, which trapped her behind them. She'd experienced her hugs before, but this time it didn't feel like she was about to break her spine. It was gentle, which in a way made it worse.

"Thanks a lot, Niss," Reiko whispered, and she could hear the smile on her voice. "I promise I'll find those bastards, and I'll make them pay for everything they've done."

"Yeah..." Hao's faint voice added. "I'm gonna miss you, Ni Ni."

Inyssa stood as still as a plank, her eyes welling up ever so slightly. After a few seconds she nodded without much strength, and hugged Reiko back.

 

* * *

 

 

The next morning came sooner than expected, forcing Barry and Inyssa to their feet with cold winds and the heavy scent of familiarity, which they hadn't felt ever since leaving Twinleaf. They packed their possessions in silence and left the town just as dawn broke over the horizon, past the dark wall that was Mt Coronet.

The only sound around them was the loud crunch of shoes against fallen leaves, which Inyssa noted dwindled in quantity as the days went by. She took in a deep breath, smelling the unmistakable scent of the coming cold. Even though winter had arrived a few weeks ago, it seemed the season had taken its sweet time unpacking its bags and was only now ready to unleash its might all over Sinnoh.

This one would be a harsh winter. She could feel it in her bones.

"Hey, Niss," Barry spoke next to her, looking at something on his Pokétch, "do you really think we can make it to Celestic in time? It's only two days 'til the festival and… it's kinda far."

She furrowed her brow, breathing out a thin line of mist. That's one of the many things she'd been thinking about in the past few days.

"We'll use our Pokemon to get there faster," she said. "Kitsune can teleport you a few miles ahead every few hours, and I'll use Steven. He can't carry me for long, but he flies really fast."

"Right… I just hope I don't vomit again like last time he teleported me somewhere." Barry made a face. "It feels so weird. Like having your stomach and brain switch places."

"Well, it's either that or missing the festival."

He didn't protest further, though she didn't fail to notice that he had a constant, almost imperceptible frown. She doubted it had anything to do with what they'd just talked about, seeing as he'd shown it a few times already every since his first fight against Crasher Wake.

And she had a slight hunch as to what might be causing it.

"Barry, is there something you'd like to share with me?"

He stopped in his tracks, looking like a Stantler who'd just been hit by the lights of a car.

"Wh-wha…?" he stammered, fingers fidgeting with each other. "S-something?"

"Yeah… maybe something related to your eyes changing color in the middle of your Gym fight?"

His face lost color, and for a moment he seemed fearful, until she flashed him a warm smile and his shoulders relaxed.

"You… noticed?"

Inyssa rolled her eyes, "I'm not an idiot, Barry. I was looking at you from the stands and I know the color of your eyes better than I know my own hands," she said, shaking her head. "I saw it back in Eterna too, when you could read that weird language on those stone plates. If you want to keep something from me that's fine, but at least learn how to hide it better."

"I wasn't trying to hide it!" Barry hurried to say, cheeks flushed. "I just… I didn't wanna tell you because you'd maybe think I was crazy…"

She sighed in that same disapproving tone she remembered so well from Sarah, and placed a hand on her hip.

"After all the weird shit we've seen, do you really think I'd do that? Come on Barry, just tell me."

"…I… well…."

He looked all around, as if something in that deserted route could get him out the situation he was in. He didn't seem to notice much, because he let his shoulders drop and sighed.

"…Alright. I'll tell you."

It took him a few minutes to put his thoughts in order and properly explain what had been happening to him. He went off-topic a few times and she had to remind him to come back to the actual story, but in the end she got a pretty clear picture of the situation.

"The crystallization of emotion," she repeated, stroking her chin. "And this voice didn't sound familiar or anything?"

"No, it just said… it was time I synced with it," he scrunched up his nose. "I… don't know what that means, but it felt like I could turn my eyes gold easier that time. I think… it has something to do with the way I was feeling, it's a lot easier when I'm angry, or happy or…"

"So intense feelings can trigger it, but it's also been getting easier as time goes by," Inyssa summarized. "Do you think you could do it right now if you tried?"

His eyes went wide, and she could swear the crescent shape of his hair got even pointier.

"Like… right now?"

She shrugged, "We're alone in the middle of nowhere. Where else?"

He looked around nervously; there didn't seem to be any living creature around them, even though they were walking through the main route towards the next town. She figured it had something to do with how early it was.

"Alright…" he nodded, his voice as faint as a whisper. "I'll… try it."

He took a couple steps back and closed his eyes, letting his arms hang at his side. For almost a minute all he did was stand there, looking like he was about to doze off, his breathing turning slower with every second that passed.

Even so, she saw the thin line his eyebrows formed over the bridge of his nose, and the way his shoulders were slightly tensed up. He was deep in concentration.

"Voice… please, if you're there, I want to talk to you," he whispered into nothing. "I want to know who you are…"

At first nothing happened, and Inyssa debated whether she'd have to make him really angry for it to work. However, just before she told him that, the temperature around them seemed to rise.

The change in the atmosphere was so sudden and powerful that Inyssa could feel the hair on her arms standing up, along with a shiver that covered her entire body. An invisible, non-physical wave of heat washed over the route they were standing in.

Her eyes fell on Barry; his shoulders and posture were relaxed, and she could make up the distinct golden glow behind his closed eyelids.

"…Barry?"

He slowly opened them, and the full brunt of his golden eyes momentarily paralyzed her. It wasn't like with Mars, where she was completely frozen by fear. This was a familiar, pleasant feeling, if only slightly overwhelming. She smiled at him.

However, that pleasant warmth evaporated once Barry smiled back. At first she didn't notice why, after all it was just her best friend showing her that it had worked. But slowly she realized something was… off. It wasn't the wide, goofy grin she was accustomed to, but a slight curve of the lips, something that didn't extend to his burning eyes.

His lips parted to speak, in a way completely unfamiliar to her, and the voice that came out was one that did not belong to Barry.

"Ah… finally," the voice said, raising Barry's arms as it examined them. "It's been  _so_  long since I've inhabited a human body."


	38. Gold And Shadow

Inyssa would've been less shocked if the sky had suddenly darkened or if rain started pouring upwards. She stood still as a stone and similarly expressionless, which might explain why the thing possessing Barry didn't notice her at first.

Whoever it was, it held up and spread Barry's hands, studying them as if they were thickly lettered books. Curiosity and amusement seemed to exude from his body, as clearly and identifiable as a hot gust of wind. When it spoke through Barry's mouth it did so slowly, as if getting used to talking after a long time. Two voices were intertwined as one, making it difficult to hear where one began and one stopped.

"Let's see here…" it whispered, turning the hands to look at their backs. "Tall and reasonably lean. Strong, dexterous hands. Sharp eyesight. Male, I think…" Slowly it grabbed a tuft of Barry's hair between its thumb and index finger, scrunching up its nose as it examined it. "Ugh… blonde? Well, better than ginger I suppose."

It was like seeing reality upside down. Inyssa hadn't realized how familiar she was with Barry's way of speaking. The shape and cadence of his voice, the slight curve of his lips with certain consonants, his habit to go up at the end of a question, they were like the color of the grass or the weight of her hat. Constant and safe. Reassuring. Seeing all of it absent as that thing spoke through him brought her blood to a boil.

She must've made an involuntary sound, because it turned Barry's eyes towards her. Its voice trailed off, palm still raised limply in front of its chest. There was no concern or alarm in its expression, only a different shade of curiosity.

"Oh?" It held its nose. "Hold on, I've seen you through his eyes before. Are you his friend?"

It smiled, and that's what broke Inyssa out of her shock. Wave after wave of fury washed over her body as her hand went to her belt. How dare it use Barry's mouth to smile like that?

"Tell me who you are!" she bellowed, eyebrows forming a line on her forehead. "What did you do to Barry!?"

It seemed taken aback by her reaction. With lazy, almost fancy movements it took a step back and raised a hand to scratch its cheek.

"There's no need for that kind of response," it said, raising its shoulders ever so slightly. "What's the harm in being polite? Or have you humans forgotten manners in the few years I've been away?"

Its condescending tone was like a punch to the gut. She let out a sound halfway between a growl and a yelp of indignation before she could find her words.

"Answer me! And bring him back before I–!"

Something cut off her breathing. One moment she saw it raise Barry's hand as if it wished to swat a fly, and the next her feet left the ground. She tried to gasp, tried to draw in a breath but was not able to. A pink-ish purple glow surrounded her entire body, and it felt like every inch of her skin was being slightly pulled inwards, as if she had a black hole in her chest.

"Wind and rain, will you cease your sickening chatter?" it shook Barry's head slightly, letting out a puff of air through his lips. "As if this pungent cold air weren't enough to cause discomfort in my– I mean, this boy's stomach." It blinked rapidly, seemingly confused by its own identity. "In any case, I was simply trying to strike a friendly conversation. There is no need to resort to violence; not that you could hurt me in any way. You would have more luck trying to strike the moon out of the sky with a pebble."

But she was barely listening. Desperately she tried to claw at her throat to force in a breath, but her arms stayed as immobile as rods of steel at her sides. Shadi's Pokeball slipped through her fingers, falling to the ground on the opposite side of the button. At first she was furious at her luck; why couldn't it have fallen the other way? But after a few seconds there was no room for anything but panic. The edge of her vision blurred, and a hot pain flared at her temples, accompanied by the resounding boom of her own heartbeat in her ears.

And then it stopped, and she fell. She landed on her feet but was unable to keep standing, sliding forward as her knees hit the ground. Desperately she took in breath after breath, her limbs shaking and wide eyes staring at the grass under her.

"I'm sorry," the voice said from above. "I forgot how fragile your bodies are."

Still gasping she lifted her chin, but Barry's face was darkened as the sun shone behind his head. The only thing visible were those burning golden eyes. There was a hint of concern in them, but barely.

She tried to summon the will to speak, but the words died in her throat. Fear and shock hadn't circulated out of her veins quite yet.

"W–who are you?" She asked again, this time almost as a plea. "Barry… bring him back, please…"

It stared back at her for a few moments, silent. The glow of its eyes flashed once, and it felt like she was being looked at through X-rays.

"Next time, it would do you well to wait before you cast judgment," it said, forming an easy smile. "Though I suppose I'm the last one who should judge others for being overtly emotional. I simply wanted to inspect what I'm working with; I will release your friend now."

As soon as it finished speaking its eyes closed, and Barry's body fell forward like a ragdoll. She sprung forward, caring not for the still searing pain in her lungs. Her arms stopped him before he could meet the ground, though she struggled to lift him to his feet as he regained consciousness.

"Ah…" Barry blinked lazily, his eyes back to their soft brown. "What… happened?"

He was interrupted by the sudden grip of Inyssa's arms around his neck. She let out a sound similar to a yelp of glee close to his ear, her hands shaking strongly.

"Y-you're okay!" she said, smiling from ear to ear.

"Uh… yeah?" he blinked a few times, confused. "What's going on? The last thing I remember was trying to turn my eyes gold and then… nothing."

She gathered as much of her scattered wits as she could and tried to reply, "S-something possessed you! It… it talked through you and tried to hurt me! It was like…"

" _I have a name, you know."_

The sudden voice made them clash foreheads, and consequently take a sudden step back. Eyes slightly watered by tears of pain they turned towards the ethereal voice, and their expressions went blank with shock.

A small, almost humanoid creature floated near them at eye level, its pale body almost transparent under the rays of the sun. Its round face was partially pink, as were the four appendages coming out from behind its head. Two ribbon-like tails grew from its back. Its eyes were the same shining golden as she'd seen on Barry only a minute before.

It spoke again, without opening its mouth. Its voice seemed to resound inside their heads.

" _If you must address me, I suppose you may call me Mesprit."_  There was no cadence to its words, and still they could feel the smugness of it.  _"Master and guardian of the human concept of Emotion. Mentor and friend of the legendary Synn. Muse to mistrals, enemy to tyrants and youngest of the Lake Trio…"_

It blinked once, and Inyssa could swear she heard a smile on its voice.

"… _You might have heard of me."_

 

* * *

 

 

To say they were not able to speak would've been putting it lightly. There was a pause to their bodies, to their very breathing as they stared at Mesprit. Like the miliseconds between thunder and lightning. Like the infinitesimal moment after one wakes up, before reality unfolds around them.

" _Well?"_  It said, startling them back to their senses.  _"Must you stare at me like a couple of slack-jawed Mudbray? Say something, will you?"_

But, while they might have returned back to reality, their tongues were still tied by the impossibility of what had just happened. Inyssa exchanged looks with Barry; a mix of cold disbelief and sparkling excitement ran just beneath the surface of his expression.

She then turned towards Mesprit once more, though she could barely stand the weight of its gaze. Its eyes did not move. Its voice was not carried by the wind. And yet, when it spoke she could perfectly imagine the inflexions and body language that went with the words.

As the cogs of her mind whirred back to life, realization started to dawn on her. She wasn't hallucinating, if Barry's mirrored shock was any proof of it. She was staring directly at a legendary Pokemon; one of the first beings to ever come into existence.

She could barely contain a laugh as she thought that. It sounded so idiotic, so dream-like that even when having the evidence right in front of her she could still hardly believe it. But before her mind could fully accept the truth she felt a shiver, and Mesprit spoke again.

" _I don't like your eyes."_

Somehow, she knew its words were directed at both of them. A few seconds passed in complete silence.

"I'm… sorry?" Barry finally stammered, voice as thin as a sheet of ice.

" _You heard me, boy. Who goes around with a pair of eyes like you two have?"_  There was a slight accusatory tone in the way it said that.  _"Look at your friend, for example. As green and bright as a patch of forest; the little yellow spots even remind me of the fireflies that appear during a summer night. Too curious, too Fae."_

Before they could begin to process the meaning behind that rambling its gaze fell on Barry, whose hair seemed to get pointier like the fur of a startled Glameow.

" _You're even worse off,"_  it said, and Inyssa imagined it shaking its head.  _"It wasn't enough with being blonde, you also had to have eyes like firewood before it bursts into flames. You can see the pale orange cracks breaking through the surface like a burning spider web. The eyes of a hopeless fool."_

The ghostly shape of its body moved slightly, turning it towards the east. It looked into the distance… or it might be more accurate to say that it faced itself into the distance. Like a tree, or a stone or a lake.

" _To think I'd find myself stuck with such a dreadful excuse for a hero,"_  it said, seemingly speaking with itself. " _Not surprising, not in the slightest. These humans have chosen comfort instead of greatness, and here they are now. How could I expect songs and temples for me if this is what I'm forced to work with? It's like always, hope and experience…"_

"…hats and shelters," Inyssa finished its sentence, unprompted.

There was a small pause, and Mesprit turned towards her. She could sense curiosity behind its eyes.

"That's… something Shauntal said," she whispered. "I mean… that's what she wrote. She's my favorite… uh…"

" _Shauntal Hallow?"_  It asked, a hint of irritation in its tone.  _"Big glasses? Droopy eyes? Odd, purple dress?"_

She nodded weakly.

" _Ah, it's been a long time since I ran into her. I can't believe she would steal my saying for her writing."_  Mesprit sounded halfway amused and offended.  _"I worked as her muse for a couple of years, you see. Strange gal, but I liked her."_

Maybe it was having a link between her current situation and something in the real world, but finally her mind started to accept the reality it had been presented with. The knot on her throat started to dissolve, and she found that speaking came a bit easier.

"So… you really are…" She tried to pronounce the name, but something stole her breath.

" _Do you need a written statement, you witless girl? Yes I am Mesprit, and yes I am here in the… well, not flesh and blood exactly, but you get my point. Will you two stop acting like blabbering idiots and finally talk to me?"_

She felt dizzy all of a sudden, as if her stomach had decided to do a few spins inside of her. Taking a sudden step back she felt a familiar touch on her shoulders. Barry had stopped her just before she tumbled backwards into the ground. His expression was not much different from hers, but there was a strange gleam of victory in his eyes.

He parted his lips, and said something that gave her pause.

"I… I knew it. I knew it was you."

There was a certain relief in his voice, though she could barely pick it up by how faint it was. She stared at him blankly for a moment, only after raising an eyebrow in a way that clearly stated  _'Explain yourself'._

"I've been thinking about it since the fight with Wake," he said. "I thought I was crazy but… the golden eyes, that whole thing about Emotion and being able to read those plates…"

Realization hit her with enough force that she might've stumbled backwards again if she weren't being held by her friend's hands.

"The day we became trainers," she whispered, pale as a ghost. "W-when we went to Lake Valor! You were shouting and calling for Mesprit and…!"

"It was there!" Barry yelled enthusiastically, starting to flap his hands. He turned his head towards its floating, translucid body "You were there!"

There was a short silence in which Inyssa could feel a faint, begrudging sense of respect coming out of Mesprit.

" _Good, that saves me the trouble of having to explain it. Let it be known that you do have a brain between those ears of yours."_  It's comment seemed directed at both of them.  _"I hope you're also aware of the reason I tend to bond my soul with that of a human's? Stories and songs about me haven't waned that much, have they?"_

Inyssa let out a sound that might've been a  _No_ , if one were listening carefully. Of course the tales and legends about the Lake Trio were still being told; both she and Barry had grown up listening to them. In her younger years she'd made a habit out of collecting these stories, and even after so long with the vaults of her memory covered in cobwebs she could still think of dozens of them without any effort.

Maybe that's why part of her mind refused to believe what was happening. Of course legendary Pokemon existed, of course Mesprit and Azelf and Uxie roamed the world looking for worthy heroes, and of course all those incredible people she'd read so much about had existed, breathed, lived and died on the same earth she walked on.

However, those truths belonged in stories; they belonged out there in ancient times and high walled castles and bloody battlefields. They belonged in the forgotten hours of the night, in those dark forests where lights danced just outside your vision and it was impossible to tell north from south. They belonged in her memories, and in the innocent, hopeful smile of a young Inyssa that had stopped existing the moment her sister vanished.

So lost she was in thought that she barely heard Barry speak.

"Y-you chose me?" His voice had recovered its strength, and the sheer excitement behind it hit her like a pleasant gust of air. "Me? T-to be a… hero?"

A few weeks ago, hearing that might've filled her with spite to the point where she would find it difficult to speak. But now it seemed strangely absent, and instead what filled her gut was the happiness behind her friend's voice, which seemed to overflow from him.

It didn't last long, unfortunately.

" _Let's not get too excited. I did choose you as my partner, but know that it was due to necessity and not out of by my own volition."_

The brightness evaporated from Barry's expression, and his shoulders sank, "O-oh."

" _Don't undersell yourself either. I couldn't have just chosen any clueless oaf that passed near my lake, it had to be someone compatible with the virtue I embody."_  Another slight pause.  _"I didn't have many options, and you happened to be a barely acceptable candidate. I'd wager that's the reason it took you so long to bond with me and start hearing my voice."_

"If you're trying to make him feel better then you're not very good at it," Inyssa said, protectively. "Barry's a better candidate for a hero than anyone else in this region."

She mercifully ignored the pale red tinting her friend's cheeks at that moment, along with the gentle squish of his hand on her shoulder.

" _That remains to be seen. Anyone can carry a melody in a bucket, but it doesn't mean their fingers know the chords of a lute."_  It said, as if Barry and Niss could understand what the hell that meant.  _"Still, hard facts are hard facts. I needed to find a partner and here you are, boy. May our budding camaraderie be either pleasant or short."_

She didn't know what she expected; perhaps a ray of light to tear through the skies and fall on top of Barry, maybe for the wind to dance around him, under his command. She did not expect the process of knighting a legendary hero to be a simple description and an imaginary pat on the back.

Barry didn't seem to mind, judging by the way his fingers curled and uncurled and his hair seemed to get even pointer. She knew what that meant; excitement was bubbling on his chest, and soon it would explode. That's just the kind of person he was, and she loved him for it.

She was different, though. If Mesprit was right about one thing it was that she was curious. At the moment at least a dozen questions danced inside her head, while the other parts of her brain worked like a well oiled machine to unravel the situation in front of her.

"Why were you so desperate to bond with someone?" She asked, controlling the tone of her voice. "You're talking like you were trapped in the lake."

At first she thought her question might've been a bit too forward, judging by the small pause, but once Mesprit spoke the tone of its voice made it clear it was dying to tell the story.

" _That is not far from the truth. You see, I am… how to put it, without my physical body, for the time being."_

She looked at Barry, then at Mesprit and then at Barry again. He mirrored her expression, lips curling up involuntarily.

"Yeah, we can see that," Barry said, choking on a sprout of laughter.

" _I'm glad my predicament amuses you, boy."_  Mesprit said, and she could feel a sigh behind its words.  _"Truth of the matter is, I can leave my body whenever I please, with just a thought. Sometimes I find the binds of flesh to be too restricting, or I fancy bonding with a human for a bit. However, this time…"_  There was a short pause, and Inyssa recognized it instantly as a dramatic one. She'd studied theatrics enough in her youth.  _"…I've been forced to escape my body unwillingly. I was attacked."_

Barry gasped, putting both palms against his mouth. Inyssa saw this and felt laughter bubbling in her stomach. He'd always been the perfect audience for people with a flair for the dramatic.

"Who attacked you?" he asked, concern written all over his face.

"Yeah, and why did you have to run? Aren't you really strong?" She added. "Not that you look the part, mind you…"

" _You seem to have as much tact as a knife to the throat."_  Mesprit said, a spark of irritation in its tone.  _"I am powerful and functionally immortal, but I am not invincible. Besides, those filthy caitiffs caught me off guard while I was sleeping."_

She raised an eyebrow, "You… sleep?"

" _Of course I sleep! I get tired of dealing with you humans so much, and sometimes I need to rest for a few years,"_  it scoffed.  _"But that's not important! As I was saying, I was awoken by an army of powerful Pokemon at my doorstep, lead by a strange group of people. I fared well for a short time, for my power was greater than theirs, but soon I found myself overwhelmed. I tried to teleport to another location, but whoever lead the attack had thought it through and had positioned a few Alakazam around the perimeter of the lake so no one could get in or out."_  It took Inyssa a moment to recognize the weightless tone behind Mesprit's voice; it was the same one she used whenever she was being a sore loser.  _"I had been… badly hurt, and I couldn't think of another way out. I left my body behind to escape, and they took it. I had no choice."_

To Inyssa it sounded like Mesprit was trying to convince itself than them, but she knew better than to mention it out loud.

"When did this happen?" she asked. "How long ago?"

" _Let's see… I'm not very good with time."_  Mesprit's body moved slightly, its head looking up at the sky.  _"When was the last full moon?"_

She furrowed her brow, trying to think back. "There's gonna be one this Saturday, so thirty eight days ago I think."

" _I see. Ten moons have passed since then, more or less."_

She made the math inside her head. It had happened slightly more than a year ago, which seemed to her like a long time to wait for someone worthy to approach the lake.

"And what did you do when you escaped?"

" _After that I flew towards Lake Valor and Acuity, but my siblings were nowhere to be found. I looked for them all over, but after a few weeks my soul weakened and, having no body to return to, I had to go back to my cavern in Lake Verity and wait until a worthy human showed up."_  Another short pause, punctuated by a sudden gust of wind around them.  _"My siblings must've been captured first. Had they escaped like I did, I'm sure they would've come to warn me."_

Barry and her exchanged looks, not knowing what to say. What did one do to cheer up an immortal entity of Emotion, anyway? She couldn't think of many things that would've been significant enough.

" _Me and my siblings… we never got along. But knowing that they were attacked without me being the wiser... it was a heavy blow to my pride,"_ said Mesprit.  _"I hope they put up a good fight against those oddly-dressed bastards, at the very least."_

Next to her Barry repeated Mesprit's last sentence in a hushed tone, and a moment after his eyes went wide and he gasped.

"Team Galactic!" He yelled, grabbing strongly to Inyssa's wrist. "They have to be the one who attacked them!"

She narrowed her eyes, mouth slightly agape.

"Y-yeah… I know," she said. "I kinda arrived at that conclusion a while ago."

His posture wilted, and a soft blush painted his cheeks, "Oh…"

" _Team Galactic?"_  Mesprit asked.  _"What is that?"_

She made a wave of the hand from side to side, "Group of terrorists. They've been doing a lot of horrible stuff for a while now."

"That's putting it lightly," said Barry with a pained smile. "I can't believe they tried to kidnap you and your siblings, though."

" _It is not the first time humans have tried to garner our power for their own,"_  Mesprit said sadly.  _"Though they seldom succeed, and when they do it doesn't tend to last. If there's one thing you humans are good at is rising up against a tyrant's rule."_

"We are amazing that way," she shrugged. "What's your plan, then?"

Mesprit thought for a few seconds, and when it finally spoke it did so with a noticeable strain in its voice.

" _Normally I would lay low and wait for this to blow over in… let's say, a decade or so."_  Both Inyssa and Barry scrunched up their noses at the sound of that.  _"However you two don't seem like the kind to wait on the wings while everything unfolds around you."_

"We're not gonna wait for anything." Barry declared, a hint of defiance in his voice. "Even if you didn't have a lot of options you chose me, and we're gonna do everything we can to stop Team Galactic!"

"Easier said than done," she whispered under her breath. "Though I agree with your sentiment."

Without warning Barry gave her a slight slap on the back, sending a spider web of pain through her spine. She turned to him, furious, but he didn't seem fazed.

"Come on Niss, we're legendary heroes now!" He sent both arms flying to the side, grinning from ear to ear. "We gotta act like it!"

"You're the chosen one here, not me," she raised her palms, knuckles resting on the front of her shoulders. "I'm the charming, silver tongued sidekick that tends to be the audience's favorite."

He couldn't help but laugh, and the sound of it eased part of the knot that had formed on her stomach. To tell the truth she was more than a little overwhelmed, and rightfully terrified. She still hadn't completely accepted the current turn of events, but there would be enough time for that later.

" _Yes, how positively charming you two are,"_  Mesprit said, clear sarcasm on its voice.  _"Well? Do you two have a plan to take down this so called Team Galactic?"_

Their laughing stopped as suddenly as a scratched record. Barry and Inyssa exchanged an identical, guilty look.

"We… were kinda working on that." Inyssa formed a lopsided smile. "We don't think we're strong enough yet, so we were planning to go through the rest of the Gym leaders before we went looking for them."

" _As good of a plan as any, I suppose. It would be inconvenient if you died on my accord,"_  Mesprit said, and for a moment it looked like it nodded.  _"The few scraps of power I can give you might not be enough to override your weakness, and it might take you a long time to learn to channel my other abilities."_

Barry looked a mixture of excited and sad, which was quite the strange expression to behold.

"I wish we could do something, though," he sighed. "The last time we ran into Metchi she didn't want to tell us what Team Galactic was planning. We should've pushed more for her to tell us."

She frowned, remembering that unfruitful and irritating conversation with the pink haired girl, "She just spouted some nonsense about how we wouldn't believe her. Honestly, why even mention it if you don't–"

Her hand was in the middle of a dismissive wave when it froze, along with her voice. Heat grew from the depths of her chest as her dozen of disjointed lines of thought connected as one on her mind.

"Niss?" Barry narrowed his eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Metchi…" she replied, lower than a whisper.

"What?"

"Metchi!" She turned towards him, her voice so high pitched that it made him jump back, startled. "T-the first time I ran into her! And back in Eterna when she was in the lab with us! Her eyes were gold too!"

At first he stared worriedly at her, but a moment after his eyes went wide with realization.

"She told us she stole something from Team Galactic," he whispered, as if the words were shy to come out. "Do you think…?"

She nodded energetically, feeling as if ants were running under her skin. It was the only thing that made sense, it had to be true.

Metchi had stolen either Azelf or Uxie. She'd bonded with them just like Barry had.

" _Mind sharing what you two are talking about?"_ asked Mesprit, and she could perfectly picture it crossing its arms, offended.

It took a few minutes to explain the whole situation, what with Barry an Inyssa both having clearly distinct views on Metchi's motives and what kind of person she was. However in the end it seemed that Mesprit understood, though it stood quiet for a few seconds.

" _I see… if what you tell me of this girl is true, then it is almost certain that she's bonded with one of my siblings,"_  it said in a hushed tone.  _"If I had to guess, I'd wager that it was Uxie. Azelf has never liked humans, and I'd doubt it'd ally itself with one."_

"That's it, then!" Barry said, beaming. "All we have to do is find her and we'll have two out of the three Lake Trio siblings on our team! Team Galactic wouldn't stand a chance!"

Inyssa flashed him an awkward smile. She wished she didn't have to burst his bubble so violently.

"We have no idea where she is though," she said. "And she didn't leave any contact information with us. I doubt she even has a Pokétch."

His entire body seemed to deflate at her words,

"…Oh," he looked down, frowning. "But… couldn't Mesprit track her down if she has Uxie?" He looked up to it, hopeful. "Can't you?"

" _Not while it's inside another human's body. I could only sense its presence if we were both on the outside, like I am now, and we were physically close,"_  it explained.  _"Unfortunately, I must spend most of my time in the depths of your mind, boy. I will not be able to see anything of the outside world while that happens. You'll need to call me if there's trouble."_

No one said anything for a few seconds, too busy either brooding or trying to think their way through their current situation. Inyssa's mind raced with possibilities of how they could locate Metchi, but nothing seemed logical. They could ask Sarah to keep an eye out for anyone who looked like her, but then they'd have to explain why they needed that favor. She figured Mesprit wouldn't be too happy if they revealed it for the whole world to meet.

" _Now now, no useless sulking when I'm around,"_  Mesprit broke the silence.  _"We have a good lead, which is better than nothing. Let us simply continue our path and do our best for now. We will find that girl, and things will unfold smoothly."_

Inyssa turned to look at it, and raised an eyebrow, "I didn't peg you as an optimist."

"I am the original optimist, you witless girl."

Barry and Inyssa shared a tiny laugh, and she could imagine the beginning of a smile coming out of Mesprit.

"Well… I guess we better get going, then," she shrugged. "The trek to Celestic might be a bit more interesting than I thought."

" _Let us hurry, then. I'll retreat to the safety of your mind for now, boy,"_  it said to Barry.  _"However, I implore you to call me for dinner, and let me possess your body for a short time. It's been eons since I've enjoyed a good meal."_

 

* * *

 

 

Metchi decided to add ' _meditation'_  to her ever-growing list of things that she hated with a passion. Maybe as a footnote, in between  _marriage_  and  _milk_.

She took in another deep breath, eyes closed shut. Her back was as straight as a plank, and her hands were placed palm up one on top of the other over her lap, the tips of her thumbs touching slightly. She held in the air for another second and let it go, her shoulders wilting forward.

A glowing gold shimmered from behind her eyelids, and the rest of her body was covered in a slightly paler glow, as if she were exuding sunlight from her pores. This lasted for almost ten seconds, until her concentration broke and she had to take a sudden breath, eyes going wide in pain.

The wind, which seemed to have stilled while she meditated, began to blow in earnest, sending trails of fallen leaves dancing in front of her. The only other creature in that part of the forest besides her was the Monferno standing a few feet away, punching and kicking the air in rapid succession, his body covered in wisps of flame.

His training was going a lot better than hers, it seemed. And just like that, with that thought popping into her mind, a voice did as well.

" _That was the worst attempt so far, Metchi."_

She took yet another deep breath, if only to stop herself from replying less than tactfully to that.

"I don't know what the hell do you want me to do," she shrugged, breathing heavily. "I'm trying, you know I'm trying!"

" _You're hesitant is what you are,"_  Azelf said, sighing.  _"I know you despise using the Monarch's Eyes, but we don't have the benefit of wasting one of the only tools at our disposal."_

She let herself fall against the ragged texture of a nearby tree, hanging her head down. Thick droplets of sweat ran down her forehead.

"You're grumpier than usual today," she whispered under her breath. "Who took a shit on your cereal?"

" _I'm the same as always Metchi, it's just that today I feel the air around us a bit… well, it doesn't matter. Just keep concentrating and practicing."_

"It's not as easy as you make it sound," she scoffed. "There has to be another way to do this."

" _If we had more time to work with, we could move on to even broader applications of my power,"_  Azelf said.  _"However, with only two days before we head to the lake all we can do is hone the skills you already have. Which is why you need to be able to maintain the eyes for more than a minute without collapsing."_

As usual, Azelf's knack for being both right all the time and a total asshole about it left her without much to say back.

It was theoretically possible that they would reach the lake and no one would be there to stop them. It was also theoretically possible that every single member of Team Galactic would slip on a bar of soap at the same time and her problems would be swiftly resolved, but it wasn't something she could count on. She needed a lifeline, and this stupid power was all she had.

"I must be the worst hero of all fucking time." She laughed at her own comment, a bit of pity under her voice. "Who the hell sent me to–"

She was interrupted by the sight of the Monferno approaching her. His brow was constantly furrowed, as usual, and he sported a familiar look of exasperation on his round face. However this time it seemed more relaxed, as if he were getting used to it.

He stopped five inches from her, stomping the ground as if she were to blame for all the noise and arguing. He then growled something that Metchi did not understand and he made a strange gesture, letting both arms fall at the side of his body.

"Uh… what?"

He did not move, glaring at her expectantly.

" _I believe he wants you to imitate his pose."_

She looked towards the ghostly illusion of Azelf, and then back to Monferno. He didn't nod, but he didn't shake his head either.

"Alright…"

With effort she pushed herself to her feet, every muscle complaining loudly, and stood in front of the fire Pokemon. He barely reached to her midriff, but she did her best to imitate the way he stood. Feet parted; not too much but not too little. Arms hanging limply, shoulders down and neck craning slightly forward.

"Is this good?" she asked, hesitantly.

Monferno nodded energetically, as if saying ' _Finally!_ ' and urged her with a wave of the hand to do what she'd been doing before. After a moment of consideration, Metchi nodded and closed her eyes.

The change was so immediate it startled her. As if a bonfire had come to life inside her chest, a weightless blanket of flame emerged from every pore of her body. Her eyes lit up like lanterns. Such was her surprise that she was momentarily stunned; which was good since otherwise it would've instantly vanished the second she moved.

She stood still as a statue, breathing in and out as the power traveled her veins. It felt comfortable and familiar, and she had to use only a fraction of the concentration she'd needed before.

"Wh-what is this?" She asked, her voice intertwined with that of Azelf.

Monferno roared and growled the answer, all the while crossing his arms smugly. She blinked a few times, understanding none of that he'd said.

" _He's saying that a relaxed and natural posture works best for the flow of energy,"_  Azelf clarified.  _"Rather obvious, now that I think about it."_

She only stopped herself from crudely replying to that because she knew the effect would break if she did. Instead she tried to control her breathing and plunged herself deeper into the calming feeling. It was even stranger than before; in it she could feel the direction of the wind even with her eyes closed, she could count every single leaf that fell around them along with the heartbeat of Monferno and herself.

She took a sudden breath; there was something more. She would've called it a shadow on the edge of her vision if she were… actually seeing, though she could find no better way to describe it. It was similar to the feeling of someone staring at her back, or the hurried whispers of people talking about her. A slight shiver ran down her spine, and she didn't know why.

" _In any case, this is a pleasant development,"_  she heard Azelf's voice distant, as if it were many feet away.  _"Hopefully you'll last at least five minutes, and then we can move on to…"_

But she wasn't listening anymore. Deeper and deeper she went, opening doors inside herself that she didn't even know existed. She walked the halls of an enormous, pitch black house and the further she walked the calmer she was. The heat enveloping her was so comfortable now, and she felt like she could take a long, pleasant nap…

" _Metchi…"_

She scrunched up her nose, as if a fly had zoomed past her ear. Why did Azelf have to bother her now? Didn't it want her to give herself to this power?

" _Metchi!"_

More and more doors she opened, and with each one she could begin to make out the faintest flickers of light in the distance. If she could only get there…

" _METCHI!"_

She came back to reality, the shift so sudden it made her violently dizzy. She shivered like a Growlithe trying to dry its wet fur, and her eyes went wide, back to their usual blue.

"What happ–"

" _Metchi!"_ Azelf yelled inside her mind, making her jump. _"You're back! Listen to me, there's someone w–"_

Its voice stopped, without warning. It fizzled out inside her head, leaving the entirety of her body covered in an empty, hollow mantle of nothing.

"Hello."

She gasped so hard she actually hurt her throat. The voice traveled towards Metchi and Monferno like invisible ropes of wind, keeping them still and leaving them breathless. A figure appeared from the shadow between two trees, taking light steps towards them.

The hooded stranger lifted her chin slightly, and Metchi could see the outline of a woman's body underneath the garment. Her skin was pale like polished marble, with a long, red scar running from her chest to the right side of her neck. Messy tufts of hair framed her strangely angular face. Shadows covered her eyes, even though the light of the sun should've revealed them.

She formed a lazy, lopsided smile of thin lips, and spoke.

"I am terribly sorry for frightening you," she said, barely above a whisper. "It's a pleasure to meet you; my name is Shadi."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Small tidbit since I know some of you raised your eyebrows at the moon thing. In the world of my fic, the synodic period of the moon is forty days instead of twenty eight. And yes, this is relevant information.


	39. Downward Spiral

Metchi squared up her shoulders and lowered her knees expectantly, the hair on the back of her neck standing up as if she were a startled Meowth ready to either pounce forward or run away. Monferno did the same, though in his case it was clear what option he'd choose, should the situation come to it.

If Shadi noticed she did not show it, though there wasn't much of her to see. The fabric of her coat (was it even a coat? It kind of looked like a cloak) reached almost to her feet and waved at the tips, even though there was no wind in that part of the forest. She could swear she saw the edges slightly fade into shadows when she wasn't looking directly at them.

 _Azelf?_  She thought with as much concentration as she could gather.  _Azelf! Are you there?_

No voice replied back, and panic began to set in as if a dam had burst inside her. She could feel its absence, as if an entire part of her mind had suddenly gone to sleep.

"What do you want?" she asked, her voice imbued with more bravery than what she felt. Monferno echoed her words with a low growl, baring his teeth.

It took Shadi a moment to reply, and Metchi felt as if she were being looked at through X-rays.

"I want to talk," she said, voice surprisingly firm for being so quiet. "Last I checked, that was a perfectly acceptable thing to do between strangers."

Metchi could hear the exhaustion in her voice, even if she didn't display any of it outwardly. Still, she didn't believe for a single second that this so called Shadi was anything but bad news, as wimpy as she looked. Even if her sudden appearance hadn't lined up with Azelf going quiet she still would've figured something was off about her.

 _I can't ask her about what happened to Azelf_ , she rationalized.  _Then I'd be admitting that I bonded with it._

"I'm not a very talkative person," she said with a clear undertone of threat in her voice. "If you're lost I can give you directions and you'll be on your way. Best if we keep out each other's path, lest someone gets hurt."

While Metchi's posture seemed relaxed on the outside, anyone who paid attention could see the signs of danger. Her shoulders were stiff, one of her hands was slightly raised and the other one hovered dangerously close to her pocket, where one of her many hidden knives laid unseen.

Again, Shadi did not seem to notice anything, and looked as if she couldn't bear the thought of danger being something she would need to deal with. She looked as if she were about to yawn.

"I'll be off as soon as we can talk," she said. "You are Metchi, correct? Previously known as Ursa?"

Her body moved before she willed it to, the sound of her old name flooding her with a panicked heat. With a movement as fluid as water she slipped two fingers into the hidden pocket of her shirt and grabbed the folded knife. At her left she saw a small explosion of light, followed by a wave of heat. Monferno had been quick to react as well.

But it did not matter one bit. Shadi lunged forward, moving so fast that Metchi wasn't even sure she'd moved at all. She saw the glimpse of two arms rustling under her cloak, and… was one of them made of shad–

Before she could process that thought Shadi's fingers closed around her wrist, and everything went black. If she could scream she would've done it at the top of her lungs, and if she had any control over her breathing she would've inhaled sharply enough to burst a lung.

As soon as their skin met Metchi felt a chill running up her arm like the crack of lightning. Her strength left her, consciousness beginning to fade.

Then it stopped, just as fast as it had started, and she fell backwards to the ground. She barely avoided hitting the back of her head, and for two seconds that felt far longer she simply laid there, breathing heavily and covered in a cold sweat. Still in a daze, she could hear Shadi's voice as if it were far away.

"…one way to do it. She's marked now, so I just need to tell her the rest…"

It didn't sound like Shadi was speaking to her, though she couldn't really tell in her current state. With shaking limbs she put both arms behind her and pushed herself until she was sitting. She could still feel the aftermath of the searing cold in her right arm, as if all the blood inside had turned a few degrees colder.

Her gaze fell to her left, where Monferno lay on his back like she'd been a few seconds before, only his eyes were closed shut. Her breath staggered until she took a look at his chest; it still rose up and down with the rhythm of his breathing. He was alive, at the very least.

"What did you do to him?" she asked, and it startled her just how faint her voice sounded.

Shadi hesitated for a moment, as if she'd been caught in the middle of a conversation with someone else. She then turned to face her and formed a lazy, strangely soothing smile.

"I just put him to sleep," she said. "Just like I did with Azelf. They should wake up in a few minutes, so you needn't worry."

She knew she should've been surprised by the fact that this woman knew of Azelf, but that was not the case. Her mind had about a hundred other, more important things to freak out about. More than usual at least.

"And what are you going to do with  _me_?" she asked, the corners of her lips curving up in a forced smile. She needed to buy time. "You knew my name, but you're not wearing the Galactic uniform. Was Mars too busy so they decided to hire a hitman? I hope you know what happened to the last grunts that came to find me."

Shadi hung her head a bit so their eyes could meet; hers were a pale, faded green that seemed oddly familiar. Her lips were pursed in an attempt not to smile. Her expression was that of someone tenderly watching a harmless Pokemon bare its fangs and try to make itself look meaner than it was.

"You speak too much, Metchi. Intimidation requires brevity and wit, both of which you seem to lack," she said, no mocking in her tone. "You're right about one thing, I'm not part of Galactic. I've done a few favors for them in the past, but this is not one of them. I came to you of my own accord.

"I want to rely some information to you. Once I've done that, I'll be on my way and you will never see me again." She tilted her head to the side, slyly. "I don't intend to hurt you, unless you make me do so."

As far as threats went, hers was straightforward and to the point. Polite even. Metchi staggered back for a moment as she got to her feet; she almost would've wished something a bit more grim, at least then she'd have an excuse to punch her in the face.

"Alright then…" she nodded slowly. "Say what you wanna say."

Shadi took a moment to clear her throat, as if she were about to give a damn speech. When she spoke her voice came out without the dangerous edge it'd carried before. It was slow and throaty, what Metchi would've expected from a bookworm.

"Right now you are heading to Lake Valor to recharge Azelf's power." She said, and a moment after she raised one hand when Metchi's eyes went wide. "Don't ask how I know; we'll be here all day. I came to tell you that Cyrus knows you're headed there and ordered Saturn to set up a trap for when you arrive."

She said it so nonchalantly that it took Metchi a moment to process it. She parted her lips, but felt like something was obstructing her throat.

"How…"

"It's obvious when you stop to think about it," Shadi shrugged. "I'm guessing he wants to catch you alive. They're scared you'll hide the papers you stole before going there, and they'll be lost forever if you die."

Metchi's face went a bit pale, "I… didn't even think of that."

"That much is obvious," Shadi whispered under her breath. "In any case, that's all I wanted to tell you. Make use of that information in any way you see fit."

She moved her feet back as if she were about to turn around and leave.

"W-wait!" Metchi yelped, raising a hand towards her. "How do you know that if you're not with them? And why would you tell me this? Do you think I'm just gonna… trust whatever you say and walk in there like an idiot!?"

Shadi looked perplexed for a moment, and the way she pursed her lips reminded her terribly of someone else.

"I think… that you're desperate and have no choices left," she said. "How I gather my information is not any of your business. I'm only telling you this out of kindness and because I'd rather you hold on to Azelf for the time being than them. I can't have Cyrus succeed  _too_  quickly, that would make things unnecessarily complicated."

"Then… if you want me to hold on to Azelf, why don't you come with me to Lake Valor? Why don't you help me?" She swatted at the air with one hand, frowning. "If what you're saying is true…"

"I'm afraid I can't do that," Shadi interrupted. "I'd love to waste my time with a pointless battle, but I can't fall onto Cyrus' bad side just yet. Besides, it'll be a full moon two days from now. I'll need to be in Snowpoint by then; make sure those chains still hold tight."

Metchi struggled to speak for a few seconds, a wide confusion encompassing all of her. Any reaction besides a low stammering was beyond her. A million questions flew through her mind like buzzing Beedrill, and her tongue got tied with itself while she tried to decide which one to ask first. Shadi looked like she was about to leave, again, so she didn't have much time.

"Who… are you?" she asked. "You look… I mean, have we met before?"

Shadi slightly hunched forward, her eyes hidden in shadows once more. She deliberated for a second before replying.

"I'm just someone who wants to work towards the greater good," she shrugged nonchalantly. "As for why you think you recognize me… you ran into my sister a few times, didn't you?"

It took her a second to realize what she meant. As her eyes went wide an irritating and familiar voice ringed in her head.

" _Shadi Dawn. Sort of looked like me; a bit taller, longer hair and angular face…"_

"Inyssa…" she whispered, looking up at her. " _She's_  your sister? The one that walks around like she owns the world and is annoying as all fuck?"

Shadi hunched over a bit more, one hand hovering over her stomach and the other one pressed against her mouth. She recognized the gesture; she was trying desperately to stifle laughter.

"That would be the one, yes."

"She's…" Metchi held her breath for a moment, brow furrowed. "She's looking for you. She told me that."

Shadi's smile dropped. Her shoulders rose slightly, gaining a tension that made Metchi wary.

"I know she is," she said dryly. "Unfortunately, I don't have time for family right now."

Those words triggered an immediate reaction. Heat rose to her face so fast it almost startled her. It coated her arms as well, and it took a great amount of effort not to act on the idiotic impulses that flooded her.

"I really should go," Shadi excused herself. "So unless there's anything else you want…"

"There is, actually."

It was clear she was taken aback, judging by the way her hand froze mid air. Still, she tried to form a smile and nodded courteously.

"And what would that be?"

Metchi moved as fast as she'd done before, taking a strong step forward and throwing her fist towards Shadi's face. She did not expect her punch to connect. She figured Shadi would either dodge with the speed she'd shown before or her body would disintegrate into smoke. However it seemed she was not expecting it and, for whatever reason, she stood there as Metchi's knuckles clashed against her nose.

She fell back. Not elegantly like in the action movies Metchi liked to watch; her feet slid back furiously and she was thrown against a nearby tree. As she flailed her arm to the side the back of her head connected with the trunk in a way that made it bounce. Like a ragdoll she slid down against it until her butt hit the ground.

"I just wanted to let you know; no one threatens me," Metchi said, and this time the valor in her voice wasn't faked. "Be grateful that was a punch and not a knife to the throat."

Shadi staggered for a moment, pressing a hand against her face. Blood started to run through her fingers in the spot where she'd broken her nose, and for a few long moments she sat still.

The stupidity of her actions dawned on Metchi a moment after, and the hair on her arms stood up in fear. Surely she was about to die; Shadi would get up and put her to sleep like she'd done with the others, and then she'd kill her for daring to attack her in such a way.

With clear difficulty Shadi hoisted herself to her feet, coat (okay no, it was definitely a cloak) covered in dirt and leaves. With her palm still pressed against her nose she formed an honest, almost warm smile.

"I guess I deserve that," she said to no one, letting out a giggle. "I like you, Metchi. I wish you the best of luck on your future endeavors."

And without saying another word, she took a step back and vanished into shadows.

 

* * *

 

 

Their long winded trip towards Celestic ended up being a tad more exciting than Barry expected, though not as much as he'd hoped.

It turned out living with one of the members of the Lake Trio inside his head wasn't as fancy and heroic as stories made it seem. Mesprit might've been almost as old as the world itself and the guardian of all human emotion, but that didn't mean much when it came to its personality. And Barry had spent the past two days slowly learning everything the almost-deity liked, disliked, hated, and the things it would possess him for and walk him off a cliff. He took careful notes on those last ones.

Mesprit liked eating almost as much as him, but only during the night, since it thought the concept of lunch was idiotic. Its curiosity was as wide as it was dim; it would vehemently ask them things about the world that had changed ever since its last nap, but would also lose interest rapidly if the tale wasn't entertaining enough. It would then blame them for its boredom, claiming that they were lousy storytellers. It would often ask him to stop his walking and stare at a random piece of nature for up to half an hour, saying that it liked the way the light reflected off the trees and similarly cryptic nonsense.

But worst of all was that Mesprit did not care one bit about Pokemon battling. Every time they ran across another trainer and challenged them it would loudly complain about how barbaric it found the whole thing, so loudly and eloquently that Barry figured it just wanted another excuse to bicker.

It was maddening, like meeting someone who hated eating or napping or pancakes. He couldn't quite call Mesprit out on it, but it still made him unreasonably grumpy.

Still, there were a few perks that made their bond worth it, the fact that he was technically a legendary hero notwithstanding. For starters; Barry had been quick at getting the hang out of using Mesprit's base, psychic-oriented powers. He could point at a small rock and levitate it up to five feet, though he'd get a nasty headache for a few minutes afterwards. He could create a thin sheet of a protective barrier that was strong enough to block a mild punch from Niss before breaking, though maintaining it for more than a few seconds made him feel dizzy.

However the biggest advantage was that he could teleport himself –along with Niss- up to almost a mile ahead. It took him a few tries to get the location right (he ended up on top of a tree and at the bottom of a nearby lake a couple of times), but at the end of the first day he could successfully travel that distance in a straight line with only a bit of vomiting and severe disorientation as the biggest drawback. They still used Kitsune for the actual transporting, as the grumpy Pokemon had a much better grasp on such psychic abilities than his trainer.

However, Mesprit warned him that he should only practice until he could familiarize himself enough with those abilities, and use them extremely sparingly. For one, its psychic power was limited without its body. It would keep waning as time went on, until their bond became impossible to maintain and Mesprit would be forced to leave Barry's mind.

Secondly, it wanted him to focus on getting a better grasp of the whole Emotion deal, which Barry could not even begin to comprehend. Mesprit did its best to assist him, though it was clear there was not even an ounce of a teacher inside the legendary Pokemon. Its explanations were cryptic at best and overly melodramatic poetic nonsense at worst.

Barry was twice as impatient as a normal person, and Mesprit was a quarter as understanding, which made for an interesting and irritating tutelage. Often he would catch Niss staring at him with one hand over her mouth, trying to hide laughter, staring at his frown as he basically argued with himself.

 _No wonder most humans who bond with Mesprit in stories end up a bit mad_ , he thought to himself bitterly.

His patience came to a strain during their last resting stop before reaching Celestic. They stopped to have some breakfast in one of the corners of Route 210, enjoying the fleeting shade of the tall trees before they disappeared as Mt Coronet became more prominent in the distance. Barely a speck of the gigantic string of mountains stood at their right, and almost a mile ahead they could see the sparkling blue and white of rushing waterfalls.

After eating, Barry had for once decided that his Pokemon had gotten enough training already and let himself fall against a soft, thick bush while Niss shook her head disapprovingly. She could see her past the shade of the trees above him, shouting orders and encouragement at Shadi, whose springy legs made her jump like a bullet from tree to tree.

" _Aren't you going to join your brightly eyed friend today?"_

Barry stopped before he could rest his head, a thin line forming on his forehead. Mesprit's voice had a curious, mocking tone that he'd gotten accustomed to.

"I decided to take a break," he replied harshly, as if daring it to complain. "We've trained enough lately."

" _And I'm guessing that includes what we've been practicing?_ " It asked.  _"Then again I'd hesitate to call that training. More like metaphorically falling down the stairs of learning."_

He took a deep, patient breath.

"I'll keep doing my best, and some day I guess I'll get better at this," he said to no one, eyes lost in the plumage of leaves above. "You want someone who works harder than me? Then hop on to Niss and bond with her."

" _Yes, and perhaps we should also give a pyromaniac a box of matches and point them towards a house made of wood,"_  Mesprit said, sarcasm clear in its voice _. "Additionally, that is not how it works. I can only bond with those who truly embody the concept of Emotion."_

Barry sighed as he sank deeper into the soft pillow that was the bush under him. He curled his fingers into fists and rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"I know, I'm just… grumpy, I guess." He threw his head back, eyes halfway open. "Can you explain this Emotion stuff again? Is it like… energy, or magic? Or something more abstract?"

" _All of those. And none, technically. It is not something that can be properly explained."_

Barry's expression hardened, "Everything can be explained, even abstract concepts."

" _Ha! Listen boy, if that were true you humans would've stopped writing poems and composing songs long ago."_ For the first time Barry could hear invisible waves of laughter from inside his head.  _"Trust me, I've been coaching clueless oafs like you for thousands of years, and not once have they learned through words and explanations alone."_

 _Might have something to do with the teacher_ , Barry thought.

" _The problem here is that the new Sinnohan language is too specific, too straightforward. Back in my day it used to be a lot subtler; you could say many things and imply many more with a short sentence. As such, the word that you humans know today as emotion had more than one meaning attached to it. It was also the word for benevolence, empathy and wind. And even those things fall short of fully grasping the concept."_

Barry let out a long sigh, "Great, a talk about linguistics. My freaking favorite."

" _On top of it all, you are tackling the problem in the wrong manner."_ Mesprit ignored him _. "What you need to focus on is not learning, but understanding. Let's see… remember your fight with that masked fellow? That is the perfect example."_

Truthfully, Barry was embarrassed to admit that he'd forgotten completely about that incident, what with Mesprit actually appearing into his life and all. His thoughts had been rather occupied, to say the least.

But now he remembered, and when he closed his eyes it was like he was seeing it again through another pair of eyes. The muffled chants, those rainbow colored threads that looked like glass flying towards him and all around his body. He remembered how he beckoned them forward, and how Pedri had evolved the moment they reached him.

"Was that…?" he asked with a sliver of voice. "How did I do that?"

" _Typically, the moment I truly sync with the human I've chosen is when the biggest transference of power occurs. It is a one-time deal, unfortunately, and you will need to work for a very long time to achieve something like that again, though small bursts will occur sometimes when your emotional state is heightened."_  All irritation was suddenly gone from its tone, which somewhat startled Barry.  _"In any case, it illustrates what I previously said. The understanding of what the essence of Emotion is and how you can use it is already in you, it's just not inside your mind. As such, it cannot be taught or learned."_

A heavy groan got stuck in his throat, leaving his mouth as a kind of low hum. He'd only been talking to Mesprit for a couple minutes and that particular feeling had already come back.

A few years back, when he started waking up early to jog or run, he remembered coming back sweating bullets and barely able to breathe. After taking a shower he'd throw himself into the sofa and simply lay there, feeling the dull ache of his muscles. Once he got up, every movement he made triggered a rather odd feeling of… painful bliss, so to speak. It was like yawning or stretching after a night of good sleep, it simply felt good in a very strange way.

That is exactly how his brain felt every time he had a talk with Mesprit. Tired, aching, but also slightly relaxed. It put him in a rather unique state of mind, one where the nonsensical speeches of its legendary mentor started to make slightly more sense.

Maybe the thought came to him  _because_  he was feeling that way. It landed on his mind without much fuss, like a feather falling on a pond, but suddenly he felt the urge to open his eyes wide, and something like understanding came to him.

"Maybe… it's something like infinites," he whispered to no one, furrowing his brow. "Those can't be technically explained either."

" _I… beg your pardon?"_

"Infinite, like in math!" A thin smile formed itself on his lips. "It's literally impossible for people to think about it, even if deep down we understand the concept. There was this theorem… agh, what was it?" He scrunched up his face, trying to remember. "It talked about a big number… so big that if a person actually understood it the amount of information stored in their brain would be dense enough to collapse in on itself form a black hole. And that number isn't even a tiny fraction of what infinite is!"

It was as if someone had lifted a curtain in front of his mind eye. He couldn't put it into words, but the relief in his voice was almost palpable.

"That's kind of what you were saying, right?" he asked, hopeful. "It's something so complex that my brain can't understand it, but there's another part that can. So I just have to like… go with my instinct and stuff! Like in Pokemon battling!"

He waited and waited, but the silence that ensued lasted for far longer than it should have. Had he said something wrong? Maybe he'd gotten it completely wrong…

"Mesprit?" he asked, hesitantly.

" _I… apologize,"_  it finally spoke, a fair share of awe in its tone.  _"I… simply did not saw you as the type who would enjoy a subject such as math."_

Barry tilted his head towards her friend in the distance, and smiled, "It's the only class I was better than Niss at. She hates numbers, always did." He let out a small laugh. "Is it… bad that I like it?"

" _No, of course not! It just caught me off guard is all."_  Mesprit hurried to say.  _"Your explanation was quite precise, and you've managed to grasp the concept faster than most. I might just make an acceptable hero out of you yet, boy."_

Barry struggled not to smile, and raised his scarf almost up to his nose. At first sight it would've looked like he did it because of the cold, but a keener watcher would've realized the pale blush he was trying to hide.

" _Now, I believe this rest has been long enough."_  Mesprit said with a long sigh.  _"Shall we get your friend and get going? I would like to reach Celestic before nightfall. I am simply dying to eat actual food instead of the canned atrocities you kids carry in your bags."_

 

* * *

 

 

In the end they made it to Celestic with time to spare, on the afternoon before the day of the festival.

The town rested at what one could call the bottom of a valley, surrounded on all sides but east by the innumerable tendrils of Mt Coronet. However it didn't simply sat down there, it would've been more accurate to say that it climbed up from it. Houses, buildings and roads twisted downwards and upwards like a gigantic spiral, with many smaller spirals stuck in between. At the very bottom sat a wooden structure no bigger than a person, one Inyssa couldn't quite identify. Behind it was the entrance to what she knew was a labyrinthic tunnel full of ancient caves; the Celestic Ruins.

They could see it all from where they stood, in the road atop the valley. Breathless might've been a good way to describe the state they were in, considering they'd been standing there for a couple minutes. The town was fundamentally different from all the rest they'd visited before, Inyssa realized. Just like Fortree, Sootopolis and Blackthorne, the town looked out straight out of a fairy tale.

They stared slack-jawed for a good while, trying to scan the entire town, until realization came to Inyssa. Something was missing.

"Do you see a Pokemon Center down there?" she asked, tone faint.

Barry came out of his stupor and studied the landscape a bit more carefully. He'd always been the one with the sharper sight.

"Maybe… there isn't one here?" He wrinkled his nose. "Or it might be hidden behind some building."

Inyssa hoped it was the second thing, otherwise they would have no place to crash for the night. She wasn't sure she had enough money to pay for two hotel rooms, and the idea of sharing one made the hair on the back of her neck stand up in embarassment.

Unconsciously she pressed the button on one of her Pokeballs, its light forming the familiar shape of Steven. He took to the skies with a twirl of his wings, flying down to her shoulder a moment after. His body felt a lot heavier now that he'd evolved.

"I hope you had a good nap." She scratched playfully under his chin, earning herself a few chirps of delight. "Would you mind going down there and see if you can find the Pokemon Center? Come find and alert us if you do."

With an energetic nod Steven jumped from her shoulder, extending the impressive span of his wings as he flew towards the center of town. The speed of his descent left a vacuum of air behind him, which almost toppled her hat off her head.

Regardless of whether he found it or not, they decided to walk down the road as well. As they went Inyssa could better appreciate the strange architecture of the houses around them. Most were compact and not that impressive, with only one or two having more than one floor. Not that they looked poor or badly built, far from it.

The walls were made of some kind of dark, almost glass-like stone that seemed to reflect the light of the sun. The windows were all crystal and so clean she could barely tell they were there. The roofs were sturdy and thick, and from what little she could see inside all the houses were packed to the brim, not leaving much wasted space. They've probably been built a very long time ago, but taken care of to the point of having almost no sign of wear.

The people of the town were clearly well off economically, she realized. They were just modest about it.

Every single person they ran into waved or smiled or gave them a ' _Nice to meet you_!', so sincere it made Inyssa slightly uncomfortable. The citizens looked well worn with weary, experienced eyes and soft voices barely above a whisper. Their accent was strange as well, though she could've sworn she'd heard it somewhere before.

The road downtown was just as labyrinthic as the ruins were rumored to be, and more than once they had to go back a few streets because they'd run into some kind of dead end. Still, she was having such a great time exploring the place that she couldn't care less.

The streets were packed with more people that she would've expected, all adults or older and carrying all manner of things around. Wood, cloth, bags full of trinkets, paint buckets, etc. She figured they were working to prepare for the festival tomorrow. The idea seemed rather odd.

"A town as small as this, everyone must know each other," Barry shrugged when she told him her thoughts. "They're probably all excited for the festival and want to work hard to make it amazing."

"Yeah, but we come from a small town too," she argued. "And back in Twinleaf no one wanted to help with anything."

"That's because we're from a town full of rich people. Don't look at me like that, you know it's true." He pointed at her clear frown. "The families back in Twinleaf hate each other, and I'm sure most haven't worked with their hands once in their entire lives."

Barry's words were not false, per se, but for some reason they made her deeply uncomfortable. Trying to swat that thought off her mind she looked around more, down into the spiral of the town.

Something caught her eye.

Two streets down she saw a park no bigger than a stadium, overlooking a small lake. Various rows of birch trees gave shade to almost every part of it, and in the very center sat a beautifully crafted gazebo, made of the same glass-stone material as many of the houses around town. An old woman sat on a chair in front of its entrance, wearing a soft blue shawl that covered almost her entire body. In front of her at least forty people sat on the grass, listening to what she had to say. Inyssa couldn't quite hear her words, though the strength and firmness of her voice made it to them as if carried by the wind.

They exchanged a wordless look, unanimously deciding to head down to the park. If anything, they might be able to ask someone if they knew where the Pokemon Center was.

Leaves crunched under them as they made their way to the gazebo, though no one turned to look at them despite the noise. Inyssa had expected otherwise, and with the awkward, self-conscious feeling of having intruded into a place where she didn't belong, she simply stood near one of the trees with Barry. Far enough away so that people wouldn't notice them, but they could still hear the woman talk.

Her voice was, like that of most of the people she'd met in town, as smooth as silk, though not necessarily soft. It carried itself around the park easily, so even those who were in the back could hear her clearly. It took Inyssa only five seconds to pinpoint her cadence, tone, and the way she spoke; she was telling a story. It took her five more to recognize which one it was, and at that point she was not able to stifle the gasp that came out of her mouth.

"…but she could not be defeated, no matter how many leather-hearted warriors and Pokemon they threw at her," she spoke with grim certainty. "Her strength was not simply physical, even if the sword she held on her left hand could cut through armies and mountains as easily as a knife against velvet. She wore her burning hatred like a charm, like a piece of armor that protected her against all blows."

Nyss. That woman was telling a Nyss story. And not just any, but the one that spoke of her tragic end. She felt a knot start to form on her stomach; she'd never liked that one. It was certainly good, but more often than not it made her feel terrible about every single person involved in it.

"…after many weeks of horror, the people of Kalos were left with no choice but to turn to their most hated enemies for help," the woman kept speaking. "Swallowing their precious pride, they asked Sinnoh to call back their frenzied warrior, in exchange for surrendering the war.

"However, Nyss was no longer affiliated with her country's military. She acted all alone, wanting nothing more than to find the one responsible for her brother's death. And, falling short of that, she'd be content with simply burning the entirety of Kalos to the ground, quenching the ashes under her feet.

"The citizens of Kalos realized this, and had no choice but to shame themselves further. They begged Sinnoh for their help, offering them the oversea lands they've been denied for so long, including Stark Mountain and more than half of what today is Sunnyshore and the Lily of the Valley Island. The rulers of our land accepted, though they knew there was little they could do against a power as great as Nyss'. As it stood, they knew of only one person who might be capable to put a stop to her rampage.

"Nyss was on her way to the capital city, what today is known as Lumiose, when she noticed a dark figure approaching from the horizon. She did not need to unsheathe her sword, for it'd been laying on her hand all this time. She stopped for a moment as she saw that person come towards her; was it a messenger? Had the nobles of Kalos sent someone to negotiate peace and surrender? The idea almost made her laugh. She headed towards them, ready to slit their throat as soon as they approached.

"However, she recognized who it was before she could even think of raising her sword. The sight of his pale, faded blue eyes put a stop to her rage if only momentarily, and for the first time in weeks she considered dropping her blade. The man stopped a few feet from her, one hand grasping his longbow and the other resting on the hilt of his warhammer. His expression was blank and resolute, like hers had been a long time ago.

"He was known as Noh all throughout Sinnoh, and today we refer to him as the third and last of the fabled legendary heroes. Pupil of Nyss and best friend of the great Synn; even though his tales aren't quite as known as those of the aforementioned, he was every bit as powerful and renowned.

"He'd been the first to volunteer for the task of taking down Nyss, and he'd done it without a moment's hesitation. He held the woman very close to his heart, and did not wish for her legacy to rot and fall to ruin. As such, he decided he would be the one to kill her.

"He explained all this to Nyss, and each word he said served as fuel for the bottomless fury residing inside her chest. Before he could finish speaking she lunged towards him, the madness in her eyes reflected on the blade headed directly for Noh's stomach

"He did not move and the sword did not harm him, for he'd not come alone. As the weapon bounced off, three bright lights shone behind him, momentarily blinding Nyss and materializing into the siblings of the Lake Trio. To this day, this is the only recorded mention of all three working together towards a single goal.

"Azelf had grown to love Nyss from their time together and could not bear to see her fall to her own wrath and grief. Mesprit and Uxie admired and respected the person she used to be as well, and as such joined their sibling in an attempt to put the woman down. Their combined power, along with Noh's skills as a warrior, might've been able to tip the scales on their favor. Just maybe.

"The least we speak of their battle the better, for it was long and horrific. Enough to say that it lasted until the sun went down and for many hours after. Nyss, still holding the fleeting embers of her previous power as Azelf's chosen one, called forth fire and pelted Noh with endless ropes of flame born out of the thorny vine-shaped scars in her arms. Noh summoned forth Uxie's thunder, and together they created a storm of destruction that tore through the land they fought in, which rumors say is still destroyed to this day, and nothing can hope to mend it.

"Noh managed to best Nyss in the end, for he was blessed with powers that did not belong to him. Azelf gave him the determination necessary to face such a grueling task, Mesprit crowned him with protection against the woman's smoldering rage, which would've torn anyone else to shreds. Finally, Uxie sharpened his mind and sight so that all his strikes and arrows would land true, and digging deep into his most precious memories it managed to bring back to life the shades of those whom he'd known and fought with. As Noh raised his hammer or drew the string of his bow, he did so with the strength and expertise of hundreds of warriors.

"His last arrow was the one to end the fight, and as it flew through the air the wind curved around it, allowing it to find Nyss' heart. For a single moment she gasped, eyes wide in pain and shock, and fell to one knee. Her fingers softened around the handle of her sword, but she did not drop it. She took in a deep breath, got to her feet and looked down at the wound she'd just suffered. A wound that, by all means, should've ended her life.

"With her rage momentarily replaced by surprise, understanding came to her. Noh could not kill her, just as one could not strike the moon out of the sky. Her spirit had grown into an everlasting fire that could never be quenched, no matter what happened to her body.

"In that fleeting moment before her fury came back to her, she understood what needed to be done. With hot tears of blood running down her cheeks she looked up at Noh, and then at the three legendary Pokemon behind him. Her gaze stopped on one of them, and for the first time in weeks she parted her lips to speak:

" _Mesprit, please…"_

"Hers was a tone of plea, and it didn't take long for Mesprit to understand. At first it was horrified by the mere idea of what she wanted it to do, but soon it saw the fire inside her grow and grow, and knew that they would not get another opportunity such as the one they'd been presented with. Quickly it floated down to her until they were face to face, and then placed its forehead against hers. Drawing deep from the depths of its soul it looked her straight in the eye, bright gold meeting burning green, and with a simple thought it erased the emotion out of her spirit.

"Nyss' eyes went empty, the rage inside quenched completely. Forming a sad, exhausted smile she closed them and let herself fall. However Noh was quick, and he got hold of her before her body could meet the ground. She slept deeply in his arms, her expression more peaceful than it'd ever been.

"However, all was not resolved. Nyss was still, for all intents and purposes, physically immortal, and as such would not be able to rest in peace until someone stronger brought her down. But Noh was exhausted, his body torn apart, and he knew that he couldn't bring himself to raise his weapon ever again. So, after much consideration, he came up with a plan.

"It was not an easy plan to swallow, so much that Azelf and Mesprit completely refused and abandoned the man shortly after. The first was wrecked with grief over what had happened to the woman it loved so much, and the second could not escape the guilt of having to erase her emotions. Uxie, the oldest and wisest of the siblings, understood that sometimes sacrifices needed to be made, and as such agreed to help Noh with his plan.

"They set out with Nyss' body, traveling back to the land she'd loved so much in her youth. Once they reached Sinnoh they looked far and wide for a proper place to hide her. To this day we do not know where their search stopped, only that it is someplace in our region and behind great iron doors. They cast the woman's body inside, leaving her waiting.

"Waiting for what? Well, for a warrior worthy enough to kill her, of course. Noh started to spread rumors, while Uxie bonded itself with many humans and groomed them into legendary heroes of their own, so that someday they might be able to take Nyss out of her misery. As such many great warriors went in pilgrimages to find her, and every single one of them fell to her blade. It became a tradition of sorts, one taken by only the most devoted and brave. Some say this was the birth of the idea of a Champion, long before any kind of Pokemon League was created.

"No one was ever able to best her, though. Legends say that she still waits behind the great doors of iron, her body immortal and her eyes as cold as winter itself. Hoping that, one day, a worthy warrior will force her to drop her sword and fall into the comfortable and eternal blanket of her sleep."

It took Inyssa a few moments to realize the story was over. She'd been hearing it so intently that coming back to reality wasn't an easy thing for her mind to do. She blinked a few times, and realizing that her eyes were slightly wet she rubbed then against the sleeve of her coat. Next to her Barry stood similarly stunned, mouth slightly agape and tears shimmering in his eyes.

There was no applause amongst those listening, though they rose to their feet and smiled at the old woman. It was probably a tradition of some kind.

"Now, there's no more time for stories," the woman scoffed, raising her cane to point at the children in the front. "Go off! You're young and bright, aren't you? Use that to help prepare for the festival. Maybe then I'll consider telling you another one tomorrow."

The park cleared out in less than a minute, leaving only them and the old lady. Not wanting to look like a creep or a stalker, she walked from behind the tree and headed towards her, Barry following a moment after. As she got closer she realized the woman was a lot older than she thought; at the very least in her eighties. Still, she carried herself with such ease and grace that one could hardly call her frail.

She looked up at them once they were a stone throw's away, and the grey of her eyes felt terribly familiar to Inyssa. She spoke before thinking:

"Your story was beautiful," she said with a faint tone. "I mean, I've heard it before, but never told so…"

She struggled to find the words, moreso because the woman did not take her eyes off her for a moment. They made her nervous.

"I don't think I've ever heard that last part, though," Barry added with a smile. "About Noh's plan and all that."

The woman nodded slightly, and the corners of her mouth quirked up into a smile.

"Not many have, but it is my job to tell the truth behind stories," she spoke with a low, almost humming tone. That too sounded familiar. "I appreciate your attentive ears. Not many kids your age are interested in old stories nowadays."

The word  _kids_  might've offended Inyssa in any other scenario, but the way the woman said it made it sound like the sweetest thing they could be called. She smiled back and bowed slightly, just like her mother had taught her to do. Just because many accused her of being rude did not mean she was unaware of how to act politely towards those who deserved it.

"It was my pleasure," she assured her. "Additionally, might I bother you with another question? We're not from here, you see…"

"The only thing that would bother me would be if you did not speak your mind," the woman said. "And yes, I recognized you as foreigners. Twinleaf, if I'm not mistaken?"

Inyssa and Barry exchanged a look of disbelief.

"How did you know?" the latter asked.

"Your accents are as clear as a shallow pool," she whispered. "Now, what can this old woman do for you?"

Inyssa thought for a moment before speaking, "We're both trainers, and we came here for the Festival of Spirit before heading towards our next Gym challenge. But… we haven't been able to find a Pokemon Center yet," she formed her best apologetic smile. "Would you mind telling us where it is?"

For a moment it seemed as if she were about to laugh, but she simply placed a hand against her lips and coughed. She then looked up at her with something akin to pity.

"I'm afraid we do not have one of those in Celestic," she said, and noticing the shock in their expressions decided to elaborate, "This town is traditional to the point of ridiculousness. I daresay no new constructions have been made for the past two hundred years or so."

She raised a hand to give them a pat on the shoulder at their dismayed expressions, which did make Inyssa feel slightly better.

"I know of a few good inns around town that would be delighted to take you in," she offered. "They're not as expensive as hotels, but they are twice as comfortable."

She started debating the possibility in her mind when a voice spoke from behind them.

"There will be no need of that."

The hair on the back of her neck tingled at the sound, and just before she turned she noticed the old woman looking behind them, irritation clear in her eyes.

Barry and Inyssa had to contain a gasp at the sight of the woman who'd just spoken. She wore the same, bright smile as the last time they'd run into her, which extended to the corners of her stormy grey eyes. Well, one of them, the one that wasn't covered by a tuft of golden hair. She also recognized the Pokemon whose talons gripped her right arm; Steven chirped happily, letting himself be pet by her.

"Cynthia…" Inyssa whispered, tone blank.

"You insolent girl!"

Inyssa jumped at the tone of the old woman's voice, and so did Barry. She walked towards Cynthia with her brow furrowed over her wrinkly face, one hand gripping tightly to her cane. She approached the younger woman and, without hesitation, slapped her on the side of the head. It was a gentle slap, the kind a parent gives to a child if they're misbehaving.

Still, Cynthia reeled in surprise, a deep blush covering her pale cheeks. Steven flew off her arm as well, landing a moment after on Inyssa's shoulders.

"Granny!" she yelped, eyes wide in surprise.

 _G-granny?_  Inyssa thought, eyes going wide.  _So that's why she sounded so familiar._

"Don't you  _granny_  me, you oaf!" she spat back, stomping the ground with her cane. "Where in places have you been? I've been looking for you all morning! Have you been wasting time with your Pokemon battles? Do you think coming back while I'm with guests will save you from my scolding? You've less sense than a Slowpoke!"

Cynthia took a step back after every question, her expression anxious and frightened. Inyssa had only met her once, but she saw that those emotions did not fit with her face at all.

"Granny, please! Listen to me for a moment!" Cynthia pleaded, forming a nervous smile. "I would never do such a thing. I interrupted you because I recognized these two." She made a wave of the hand towards Barry and Inyssa. "They are extremely talented trainers whom I've met in my travels."

She flashed them a beaming smile, one that caught them so off guard they could hardly say anything.

"And I just happened to overhear your conversation," she added. "You will not pay for a bed and a roof, not while I still have my pride. You two will stay in our home, and you will allow me the honor of being your gracious host." She bobbed her head to the side with perfect grace, still smiling. "It is the least I can do for fellow trainers such as yourselves."

For a few seconds there was silence as Inyssa and Barry stood there, slightly too stunned to react. And when she did say something, it was simply her bare and unprompted reaction.

"…What?"


	40. Despite the Odds

The dawn that met Matchi was a gentle and warm one. A good sign, she'd decided to see it as, instead of a pre-death apology gift given to her by the universe.

She stood atop one of the thousands of hills that covered the sides of Mt. Coronet like earthy pimples. Far below, enough to force her to narrow her eyes to see it, sat the crystalline waters of Lake Valor. The light of the sun reflected off it, turning it into a a ring of pure light that separated the nearby forest from the small island at the middle. As if they didn't belong in the same world together. They probably didn't, if what she'd learned was any evidence of it.

"Ever walked into a trap, Azelf?" She spoke at nothing, her voice strangely calm. "Knowing it was one beforehand, I mean."

"I can't say that I have," the disembodied voice replied a moment after. "Though after such a long life I suppose I'm open to new experiences."

She felt something like a tickle inside her chest, her lips unconsciously curling upwards as if someone were tugging at their edges. It was the first time such a sensation came from Azelf.

"Was that… a joke?" Her eyes widened. "Coming from you? I can't believe it! A true miracle, as I live and breathe."

"I wouldn't mind a miracle today. Us surviving to see another day, for example."

Metchi didn't reply. She'd survived plenty of bad situations before, most of which she shouldn't have. Actually, all of them, now that she thought about it. She'd always stroll forward, chin raised, chest puffed and knowing that the sun would rise the next day even if she didn't. And every time…

_Despite the overwhelming odds, tomorrow came._

She couldn't help but smile at the familiar phrase. Things were different now; should she fail, should Team Galactic succeed in their plans… she wasn't sure there would be a tomorrow for anyone to wake up to.

 _What a lousy fucking hero you turned out to be_ , said the voice in her head.

If she were a trainer she would've had such an easier time dealing with Team Galactic, she might've even gotten the chance to take out some of their commanders by now. If she had a family or money or anyone to help her, it all would've gone a bit smoother as well. If anything, she shouldn't have had to sleep on the floor every night and survive off whatever she could steal.

But no; all she had were the clothes on her back, her street smarts and her desire not to let those bastards achieve their goal.

 _I've gotten by with worse_   _before_ , she thought with a smile.

The calluses on her hands stung as she curled her fingers. Still getting used to them. She figured she'd been doing pretty well, since she almost never noticed them recently.

A memory teased itself from the depths of her mind. Her eyes went pale and distant.

A younger Metchi, though not by much. Stockier, cleaner, her pink hair a much more vibrant hue. A forced, difficult smile. Eyes brimming with apathy and shame. She had a different name as well, even before they nicknamed her  _Ursa_.

She was six months into her work as a Team Galactic member when it happened.

She'd walked into the wrong sort of room, heard all kinds of things she wasn't supposed to hear. Were it not for her careful steps and natural stealth, the boss would've surely noticed her. Then it would be a swift death for her, and a hand waved explanation for the few friends she had in the base. She'd been killed in a mission, she'd been arrested by the authorities, she'd slipped on the stairs and broken her neck.

But she went unnoticed, and as such heard the entire conversation. Horror crept up in her chest, and it did not leave her for the days to come. She knew she stood at a crossroads; there was a decision to be made.

She could try to forget what she'd heard. Go back to her usual routine; clean the floors, restock the deposit, give out inventory to the grunts who needed it, force smiles whenever it was her shift at the cafeteria…

Or (and the idea terrified her to her core), she could be the person she'd always wanted to be. It would've meant giving up all the safety and comfort Team Galactic had given her. It would've meant betraying Saturn and the rest of her friends; the first people in years who'd shown her kindness and understanding. The only ones who'd bothered to call her by the name she'd chosen for herself…

It was an absolutely ridiculous idea. She wasn't a hero, she'd known it all her life. She was a thief, a scoundrel. She had no family, no money and no honor. She was not a Pokemon trainer. She wasn't even a good person. What good could possibly come of doing the right thing?

The moment she accepted her role hadn't been one worth remembering; it wasn't the kind of origin a hero would have. But if no one else was going to do it, she figured she might as well sneak into Charon's lab and steal Azelf before she made her escape. After that she would wander the region, looking for someone who actually deserved the title of hero. She would offer Azelf to them, walk away smiling and crawl back into her life of degeneracy.

A perfect plan, were it not for the fact that she never actually found anyone more worthy than her to be Azelf's partner. Fate was funny that way.

Almost a year later and she was still playing hero, the title still as unfit for her as it'd been the first day. Still, she could feel herself easing into it as time went on. Like a pair of shoes that became more comfortable the more she walked on them

She smiled sadly to nothing in particular. For the first time in her life she didn't feel ashamed of who she was. If she were to die today, and her short journey as a hero were to come to an untimely end, she would have no regrets.

"Alright then…" She turned towards the hidden side of the hill, "…y'all ready to walk to your deaths?"

The Monferno barely registered her words, letting out a scoff with an ember and some smoke attached to it. He stood with his arms crossed, determination written clearly on his eyes. Lyserg sat next to him; the exact opposite. Her eyes were full of worry and sadness, the bright green of her wings paler than she'd remembered. From her side, and connected to the joint under her left wing, was Metchi's backpack containing the papers she'd stolen. She'd told her Pokemon that, should she not return after two days, she needed to fly west and give them to Professor Rowan.

 _Still an Association bastard, but the old man's got a good heart_ , had been her reasoning. Even now she was starting to doubt it.

"That's just in case," she assured her Pokemon with a smile, for the millionth time. "I'll come back to you, I promise."

The Tropius' eyes began to water, which made Metchi feel as if someone had wrung her heart like a wet piece of clothing. Next to her Monferno made a face of disgust and took one step to the side; whether due to his phobia to anything resembling water or his disgust for such sentimentalism, she did not know.

"Traa!" the grass Pokemon cried, and Metchi didn't need to be psychic to understand what she'd said.

_If that's so then why can't I come with you?_

"Because you've never been in a fight in your life," she smiled. "And because I'd rather doom the world than risk you getting hurt."

She tried her best to hide her voice breaking as she spoke. Knowing that she couldn't take much more of seeing her dear friend like that, she looked at Monferno instead.

"Are you sure, too?" she frowned. "You don't owe me anything. You can go back to your trainer if you want to."

For a moment she saw his expression waver, along with the flame of willpower inside of him. After all her practicing she could turn on the Monarch's Eyes at will, and without much trouble.

She saw temptation grow in his heart, until it was swiftly overpowered by what she assumed was his pride. He would not let any more debts unpaid, not while he remained standing and breathing. At least that's what Metchi imagined he was thinking.

Monferno gave a decisive nod, his will as firm as steel. She smiled warmly, nodded as well, and turned to look at the lake one last time.

"Walking to our deaths it is, then," she whispered. "Wonderful."

 

* * *

 

 

Despite her best wishes, Inyssa had to admit she'd never slept as soundly in any bed as she did on the one Cynthia provided for her.

She mentally chastised herself as she changed into her clothes the next morning, eyes still half closed. Wasn't she supposed to be careful and vigilant during the night? She was in the house of the one who'd arranged their meeting with Wrathia! How could she trust the woman after that?

True, they'd enjoyed an amicable chat with her during dinner, but those were nothing more than empty pleasantries. From it they'd learned that Cynthia and her grandmother were the groundskeepers of the city's ancient ruins, a job passed down their family line for generations. She'd offered to give them a tour after the festival, and unfortunately Barry agreed before Inyssa could think of an excuse. The poor idiot didn't have a flair for suspicion; a look at his eyes told her he'd forgotten completely about the dangerous stunt Cynthia had pulled on them.

She still remembered, though, and as such decided to keep her guard up just in case.

Still, she couldn't deny that the bed and room she'd been offered were as pleasantly cozy as a summer night. She let out a big yawn as she walked downstairs to the living room, the wooden steps creaking under her boots.

"Good morning Niss!" Barry called out from a nearby table, beaming. "Slept well?"

"Prii!" Auri smiled from between his arms.

"Like a dead Snorlax," Inyssa whispered. "Good morning, Barry. Good morning, Auri."

The living room wasn't as big as the one in her house, though it looked ten times as warm and comfortable. Between the rugs, curtains, pieces of furniture and hundreds of makeshift decorations she could hardly stop craning her neck around like a Noctowl full of caffeine. She noticed an Alolan dream catcher in front of the door separating the room from the kitchen, a Johtoan wind chime modeled after a Chimecho and even a miniature of the Lumiose Prism Tower serving as the table's center piece.

"She must travel a lot…" Inyssa whispered to herself as she sat next to Barry.

"You don't know half of it."

She almost jumped out of her skin at the sound of that voice. The door creaked behind her, opening to reveal Cynthia's grandmother walking into the room with a plastic tray on her hands. On top of it sat a steaming plate of chocolate-chip cookies and three mugs full of some dark liquid. They emanated the most delicious, mouth-watering smell one could imagine.

"Homemade cookies!" Barry yelped, eyes brightening. He turned to look at the old woman as if she'd saved his life. "Thank you so much!"

"Nothing to it," she shrugged, her voice halfway between a whisper and a cough. "These are Lava Cookies, recipe straight out of Lavarridge. And these mugs have Komala coffee, so I'd advise you wait a bit until they cool off." Her gaze moved towards Inyssa. "You should eat too, girl. You're more skin and bones than that reckless granddaughter of mine."

"Y-yes, thank you!" she nodded, grabbing one of the mugs. "My name is Inyssa, by the way. I'm sorry for not introducing myself earlier."

She gave a stiff nod, "Carolina, it's a pleasure." She sat down and took a bite of one of the cookies, her face as rough and stern as a rock. "So, you've run into Cynthia before? It's rare for her to invite people home, moreso without telling me beforehand."

Inyssa felt a tinge of shame tinting her cheeks, though nothing in Carolina's tone indicated that she found displeasure in their company. Next to her Barry was in the process of swallowing half of his cookie, eyes shining with tears due to how hot they were. Auri had grabbed one as well, as big and wide as her head.

"I met her in a church in Hearthome," Barry said, swallowing down with difficulty. "Then we… ran into her again in our way to Pastoria."

She didn't fail to pick up on his pause, nor the fact that he hadn't mentioned what came of that particular meeting. Caroline didn't seem to notice, or so Inyssa thought.

"Can't be a coincidence then," the woman said. "My granddaughter's not an easy woman to run into once, much less three times. She must have some interest in you two."

Inyssa did not like one bit the way she pronounced the word  _interest_ , though she had little time to protest as the front door swung open at that moment. Cynthia walked through, looking as striking and beautiful as she'd done every time they'd seen her and  _Oh god did I really think that? No, bad Niss! You're supposed to be wary of her, it doesn't matter how beautiful she is!_

She took the mug to her lips to hide her blush, accidentally burning her tongue.

"Good morning, you two!" Cynthia exclaimed with a wide smile. "I apologize for my tardiness; I was busy helping out with the festival preparations, you would not believe how annoying Lucian can be when he gives me a schedule. Ah, I see you've tried my gran's wonderful cookies already!"

She spoke fast and with little difficulty, which left Barry and Inyssa without much time to reply.

"Someone had to tend to the guests while you goofed around," Caroline muttered under her breath. "About darn time you joined us. I'm no good at small talk. You take care of them while I take care of my cookies."

And with that she got to her feet and left the room, all the while grumbling under her breath.

Cynthia sat in her place, letting out a deep sigh as she let her shoulders fall and her back rest on the wooden chair. When she closed her eyes she looked as peaceful as if she were sleeping, though once she opened them again their stormy grey sent chills down Inyssa's spine. For some reason the way they looked at things put her on edge.

Silence stretched through the room for a few moments –only occasionally broken by Auri's chirps of delight as she chomped on her own cookie–, while Cynthia took a sip of her own mug, a satisfied smile forming on her lips. Inyssa looked to the side, exchanging looks with Barry, and could tell exactly what he was thinking.

"I've heard you got Pastoria's badge," Cynthia finally spoke, setting her mug on the table. "Congratulations. Wake might be a giant goof of a man, but he certainly knows his way around battles." Her gaze went to Barry, whose shoulders stiffened as if he'd been shocked with electricity. "I also heard that you made good use of the Houndoom you caught shortly after our last meeting."

Barry looked as if his throat was completely dry, "Y-yeah… I couldn't have met her without you."

Cynthia nodded and smiled, and Inyssa noticed a strange glimpse behind her eyes.

 _She knows_ , she thought.  _And she knows that we know._

"I pride myself in helping trainers in need," she said, putting a hand on her chest. "Who knows; in the future they might grow strong enough to give me a battle worth remembering."

Inyssa's fingers closed strongly around the handle of her mug.

"So we're an investment, then?" she asked, heat in her voice. "Is that why you almost had us killed by that thing?"

There was a sudden pause, not only to the conversation but to the atmosphere around them. Barry stared at her with something like surprise and alarm, while Cynthia held her mug close to the table, frozen in place.

Then she smiled, though not like she'd seen her do it before. She seemed to shrink into her seat; her look that of a young girl who'd been caught doing mischief.

"I suppose it was rather heavy handed, wasn't it?" she asked, setting the mug on the table. "I couldn't think of a way for that Houndoom to keep the plate without tying it around her neck. I didn't have much time to work with, you see."

They were taken aback by how pleasantly honest she was. Not for a second did serious guilt flash across her eyes, and she hadn't tried to deny what she'd done. That left Inyssa rather speechless, knowing not how to continue the conversation.

"You… really did that?" asked Barry, lips pursing. "Why? We could've gotten hurt! If it weren't for Auri…"

Cynthia raised one of her hands, and Barry ceased speaking. Her expression was strangely blank.

"I admit that the situation got more out of hand than I expected. I couldn't have predicted the egg to hatch at that moment," she confessed. "However, before you think badly of me I implore of you to listen.

"Neither you nor your Pokemon were in any real danger. I was hidden behind a nearby tree and I would've stopped the Houndoom if your Togepi hadn't gotten to it first." She shrugged. "I didn't actually leave when we said goodbye. What would be the point, if I was the one to set up the encounter?"

As much as that made sense, Inyssa couldn't feel but be surprised. How hadn't they noticed her?

"That still doesn't explain why you threw a living flamethrower at us," Inyssa said, a clear edge in her voice. "If that's your idea of a prank…"

Cynthia formed an apologetic smile, "It was not a prank. Would you believe me if I told you that I wanted to see you battle?" Her long fingers curled into each other gingerly. "I saw you coming from afar while studying that Houndoom and the idea came to my mind; unfortunately, it was a rather rash one and I've never been good at thinking things through. I had heard so much about the two of you, and after meeting Barry back in Hearthome… I suppose I couldn't help myself."

She squared up her shoulders, a tuft of hair moving like a curtain as it fell against one of her arms. Its bright gold contrasted beautifully with her stylish black coat, something Inyssa couldn't help but be momentarily stunned by. She was alluring in a way she couldn't properly explain.

 _Curse me and my weakness for beautiful women in cool outfits,_ she sighed.

"Will you forgive me for my rashness?" Cynthia asked, tone hopeful. "I promise you that I never intended for you to be hurt."

Inyssa and Barry exchanged looks, and she noticed immediately that he'd already forgiven her by his expression alone. With a sigh and a drop of her shoulders she resigned herself to doing the same. Not much use in going against the flow on this one.

"I can understand wanting to see others fight," Barry nodded. "So no hard feelings."

"Yeah, I guess," Inyssa said. "I still don't get it, though. Why go to all the trouble with the Houndoom and that weird plate? Why couldn't you fight us yourself and be done with it? We always accept battles from other trainers."

With movements as fluid as those of a Glameow, Cynthia leaned back into her chair and crossed her arms, the pale skin of her hands contrasting perfectly against the pitch black of her coat. There was a hint of smugness in her expression.

"I believe I already said it before; I wanted to carefully observe your battling styles. Had I challenged you myself, that wouldn't have been possible," she explained as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You would've lost, swiftly and humiliatingly. How could any of us learn anything then?"

Again Inyssa was struck by how bright and honest her tone was. She could feel anger bubbling inside her, but not nearly as much as if anyone else would've said that to her. Coming from Cynthia it didn't sound like an insult or a boast; she fully believed every word she spoke.

Still, the sudden tension in the air was unmistakable. Like an open field before a thunderstorm.

"Besides, I intended to let you have the Houndoom as a reward for indulging me," she added.

She let her chin rest on one palm, while grabbing her mug with her other hand. Her expression was rather aloof, considering the two teens whose eyes were glaring sparks at her.

"You sound… confident," said Barry, frowning.

"I certainly hope I do, what kind of trainer would I be otherwise?" Cynthia said. "Oh, I hope my comment hasn't offended you. I don't believe you two are weak in any way," she hurried to add. "It's… well, you can't quite replace experience, you know? It's nothing personal, it's just that I've been training Pokemon for longer than you've been alive."

Barry's eyes went wide next to her, but Inyssa found that she wasn't surprised by that information. She could barely make out the lines on the woman's face, since they were often mistook for the wrinkles of her smile, but they were definitely there. If she wasn't in her mid-thirties then she had to be close.

"That might be so…" Inyssa said, slipping a hand into her belt, "…but no one gets to claim something like that unless they're ready to prove it to us." From under the table she raised Kuro's Pokeball, the red on top glistening under the gentle light of the lamp above. "…What do you say?"

Barry seemed stunned, but after a moment he mirrored her cocky smile and grabbed one of his own as well. There was silence for a few breaths.

Cynthia eyed them over, the fingers on her right hand eagerly tapping her bicep. From her expression they understood rather quickly that they were playing with fire.

"Well…" she whispered, trying to stifle a smile. "I suppose there is time for one short battle before the festival starts."

She rotated her right hand and from nothing appeared a black and golden Pokeball. She moved it between her fingers with ease, while the tension in the room rose with every second that passed.

At least until Carolina's voice broke through from the other room, startling them all:

"If you're gonna battle then go do it outside, reckless girl! I will not have you wreck my house again!"

Cynthia was out the door before her grandmother had finished speaking, clear horror in her face. They followed, slightly confused but eager to battle.

 

* * *

 

 

They settled in a nearby, almost desolated park which overlooked the inner rings of the town towards the ruins. Inyssa and Barry stood opposite of Cynthia, who playfully moved the Ultraball between her fingers with ease.

"This will be an official, League regulated battle." Her voice was loud and clear from that distance. "Whichever side runs out of usable fighters shall lose." She looked down at the Ultraball. "This particular Pokemon is one I recently caught. I've been training him so he can someday be part of my team; he should prove a good challenge for the both of you."

Inyssa's fingers tightened against Kuro's Pokeball, "I get the feeling you're underestimating us a little."

"It's the other way around," Cynthia shrugged. "I'm giving you the fairest chance you're going to get. Now, show me what you can do."

The black and gold ball flew upwards, exploding into a circle of light that fell to the ground a moment after. It materialized into a quadruped creature, no bigger than Kuro. His face was soft, with a short snout and long, pointed ears. His eyes were bright and pupil-less. Six fluffy tails grew from his back, waving slightly in the wind as if they were tufts of cotton.

Inyssa narrowed her eyes, hesitant. She recognized the Pokemon as a Vulpix, but…

"It's… all white," Barry whispered next to her. "Aren't Vulpix supposed to be orange?" Suddenly his eyes went wide and he gasped. "Oh! Is it a shiny!? I've never seen one of those before!"

Inyssa shook her head, "Shiny Vulpix are gold, not white," she said. "Besides, it's not just the color that's different."

Cynthia crossed her arms, forming a satisfied grin.

"You have good eyes," she nodded. "Indeed, this is no ordinary Vulpix. He's a recent addition from my trip to Alola. Feel free to use your Pokédex on him."

She didn't need to be told twice; with a flourish of her hand Inyssa grabbed the device from her pocket and pointed it at the creature. A red light flickered on the corner and an electronic voice spoke shortly after:

_Vulpix: The Mystic Fox Pokemon – Regional Variant: Ice/Fairy Type: This species has undergone a drastic change in their anatomy due to living for so long in the snowy peaks of Mount Lanakila. They live in packs as to protect themselves, with only one Ninetales as their leader. They can create ice shards with the tips of their tails and their breath is cold enough to freeze the moisture in the air._

"Regional variant…" Inyssa whispered to herself. "I thought that was a rumor."

Barry nodded, "Then… it's true? Some Pokemon can change their type depending on where they live?" Excitement was clear in his tone, bubbling under the surface of his voice. "That's amazing! That Vulpix is so cute and I wanna pet it!"

She turned to look at the Vulpix, who was busy licking his tiny paw and then using it to clean the fluffy tuff of hair on top of his head. As much as she hated to admit it, she agreed completely with her friend's sentiment.

"There'll be plenty of time for that after the battle," said Cynthia. "Now, shall we start?"

Inyssa and Barry's Pokeballs opened at the same time, their combined flash of light materializing into Kuro and Razen. The first lowered his body almost to the ground, the fur on his back crackling with electricity, while the second simply stood with his arms crossed. Both flashed a smile at their seemingly harmless opponent; Razen's was mocking, while Kuro's was slightly sadistic.

"And the battle officially starts…" Cynthia raised her arm to the sky, grinning from ear to ear. "NOW!"

Inyssa threw her hand forward, "Spark!"

"Aqua Jet!" Barry yelled a moment after.

Both Pokemon jumped forward as if propelled by springs, a coat of their own elements swirling around them. The air cackled and split behind them as they flew like bullets through the air; two bright blurs of blue and yellow now almost on top of their opponent.

Vulpix, frowning ever so slightly, lowered his front legs and did a short jump, cart-wheeling on the air. His body hovered for a moment, back facing the ground, and he could see his opponents mere moments from him.

He hit the ground with all six of his tails. A small shockwave erupted around him as his body was shot upwards almost ten feet; more than enough to avoid the double assault that would've surely put him out of the fight.

Razen and Kuro stopped on their hind legs, slightly dragging themselves and barely avoiding clashing against each other. They looked up at the sky, the light of the sun blinding them for a moment. Vulpix' figure stood out like a shadow against the intense light.

A few feet from them, Cynthia swatted the air with one hand and yelled, "Use Hail!"

Vulpix closed his eyes, his body taking on a bright white glow as he drew out all of his power into a single spot. He could feel the air crystallizing around him, wisps of cold rising like mist from his fur.

"Vaaaaa!"

With a cry that came from the deepest part of him, Vulpix extended all four legs, releasing the attack. The glow of his body exploded outwards, forming a maelstrom of glacial wind that covered the entire battlefield in a dome of cold. The moisture inside slowly started to freeze, forming jagged pieces of ice that flew like knives in every direction.

"F-fuck me, it's cold!" Inyssa yelled at the other side of the arena, hugging herself as her legs shook and teeth chattered. "K-Kuro, try to dodge!"

"Razen, look out for Vulpix!" Barry said, not quite as bothered by the cold as her.

Both Pokemon could barely see each other inside the hailstorm. Most of their attention was set on avoiding the hundreds of ice spikes swirling all around them, and with what little time they had left they tried to look for their opponent. However, even with Kuro's sharp sight locating him was impossible. He was nowhere to be seen; maybe if he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the sound of his footsteps…

Just then he heard Cynthia issuing a command, "Aurora Beam!"

His breathing came to a halt as he heard a strange cackling at his right. His fur stood up and he lowered his legs to jump out of the way, but he was too late. A blinding, rainbow colored beam of light reached his right hind leg. He let out a yelp as a sharp cold penetrated his skin like needles. Looking down he saw that the fur on his leg was completely frozen; even his paw seemed stuck to the ground.

His eyes went bloodshot with anger. As he snarled to the hailstorm one single thought came to mind: If… no,  _when_  he found that fluffy bastard, he'd make sure to tear him apart limb from limb.

"Kuro! Shake that off with your electricity!" Inyssa yelled.

"Razen, Water Gun to where that attack came from!"

With a growl of pain Kuro coated his leg in as much electricity as he could, thawing it out. Meanwhile, breathing in deep, Razen spat forward a formidable torrent of water which momentarily tore through the hailstorm toward where he thought his opponent was. It phased into nothing.

Fur standing up in frustration, Razen let out a cry of anger and spat another Water Gun at the hailstorm, this time swinging in all directions as the torrent of water covered most of the arena. Still, he hit nothing. He could've sworn he saw small flashes of white and heard the sound of paws against the ground a couple times, but they disappeared as soon as he noticed them.

"I don't get it! Where is he?" Barry muttered, clearly exasperated. "It's like he turned into mist or something."

Inyssa's nose perked up at the sound of that. Could it be…?

She took the Pokédex from her pocket and pointed it directly at the battlefield, whispering into it; "Vulpix, regional variant. Special ability."

The electronic voice came to life once more:

_Snow Cloak: An ability shared by few Ice-Type Pokemon. Due to living in frozen peaks constantly assaulted by blizzards they've learnt to perfectly camouflage themselves in any kind of hailstorm. From the outside it will look as if their bodies had turned into mist. This makes them incredibly hard to locate and attack._

"Thanks for the advice on how to counter it, jackass," she whispered. The Pokédex desperately needed fewer nerds and more trainers who documented the actually important information people like her needed for battles. She shortly thought of Lucas, and couldn't help but smile, a slight blush covering her cheeks.

She heard Cynthia's voice from the other side of the storm, "Good job on identifying the problem, Inyssa! Now let's see if you can solve it." Even from that far she could hear the smile on her tone. "You probably already know this, but sending out your Staravia would've been the correct choice. His Keen Eye ability would've been able to locate Vulpix without problem."

 _And what good is telling me now?_  Inyssa thought bitterly.

She needed to come up with a plan, that was for sure. Through the thick wind and mist she could see their Pokemon endlessly pelted by the ice shards swirling all around. There was a time limit to the fight.

To her surprise it was Barry who declared an order next. With that bright, wide smile of his he sent his hand forward, the glint of one of his wacky ideas flashing on his eyes.

"Come on, this one's easy!" he declared. "Razen, use Aqua Jet and run in a circle around the hail!"

The Buizel did as he was told; coating his body in water he propelled himself towards the edge of the hailstorm and began to circle it. His speed was such that Inyssa couldn't locate him; all she could see was an orange and blue circle blurring in and out.

She narrowed her eyes; what the hell was the point of that? Sure, it would prevent Vulpix from escaping, but why would he want to when the hailstorm kept him safe and hidden? What reason would he have for…?

Her eyes went wide with realization. Turning towards Barry she saw him smirk at her, and she mirrored his expression.

"You really are a genius," she whispered, turning towards the fight. "Kuro! Use Spark and run in a spiral from the center outwards!"

Still seething in rage, it took the Luxio a moment to process her orders; though once he understood them a wicked grin flashed across his face. Having a trainer sure was handy; they had the necessary brains to come up with the best way to annihilate one's opponent.

He jumped towards the center of the storm, zapping away any incoming ice shards as they landed on him. In the distance he heard the sound of Cynthia's voice and a moment after another beam of light tore through the hail at his right. Of course; the blasted thing had attacked him while he was in the middle of the air so he couldn't dodge. He grinned to himself; how little that woman and her bastard of a Pokemon knew him.

With a thought he discharged the stored electricity inside of him, sending it all to his muscles and nerves. A moment after, he was gone. To anyone looking from the outside it must've appeared as if he vanished into thin air, but only because they possessed the poor sight of humans. He landed on the ground a moment after, the trajectory of his previous jump cackling with residual energy.

He began to run in ever growing circles, like his trainer had ordered him to. The world around him became an incomprehensible blur of shapes and colors, the only thing he could see clearly being the glowing beams of electricity he left behind him. That, coupled with the static that had begun to materialize above him would ensure that his opponent had no possible place to run. That last part wasn't in the plan, but no one needed to know that.

He spotted the Vulpix halfway through his path. Just his afterimage, the wisps of white mist he left behind as he disappeared into the storm. Still, he could mentally map his trajectory from the breaks in the wind; he was heading to the edge of the storm, probably planning to attack Buizel and form some sort of escape.

Kuro's eyes flashed, red as rubies. He would not let him.

Forcing his muscles to their limits he ran faster yet, his body almost a bolt of lightning. With time almost slowing down around him, he finally found the bastard and charged at him. His forehead clashed against the Vulpix' side, creating a shockwave that briefly dispelled the storm in a small circle around them. The fox Pokemon was sent flying like a bullet towards the edge, where Razen was waiting for him. Still covered in a coat of water he veered to the side, head-butting him on the back and sending him tumbling into the dirt.

"Yeah, that's it Razen!" Barry yelled at the other side of the arena, pumping his fist into the air.

"Nice one, Kuro!" Inyssa added. "Now we just have to finish him o–"

Her voice trailed off as she looked at the Vulpix whom, by all means, should've been struggling to even move. That was not the case. He simply jumped back and shook his head, as if the previous attacks had been nothing but mild slaps. To add insult to injury he raised one of his paws and began to lick it nonchalantly.

Inyssa could physically feel Kuro's hatred from where she stood. She was pretty sure that, were he not on his last leg and panting in exhaustion, he would've jumped at Vulpix and sank his fangs into him until his fur went from white to crimson red.

"B-but… that doesn't make sense!" Inyssa complained. "Vulpix have awful defenses! That thing should be eating dirt by now!"

She could see Cynthia press a hand against her lips, stifling her smile.

"Might I suggest you take a closer look at him?" she offered. "Perhaps use that handy Pokédex of yours?"

"Wait, I see it!" Barry elbowed her slightly, pointing at Vulpix. "Niss, look at his fur!"

She narrowed her eyes, trying to get a better look. It… did seem like there was something strange about it. It might've been a trick of the light, maybe the sun against the ice shards inside the hailstorm, but it almost looked like he was surrounded by a veil of rainbow-colored aura. She raised her Pokédex without thinking:

_Aurora Veil: A recently discovered move known to very few Ice-Types. It allows the user to call onto the mystic power of the Aurora Polaris, surrounding itself with an almost impenetrable defense of solid light. It can only be used during a hailstorm._

Inyssa's eyes went wide; she'd never heard of a move like that, not even back in trainer school. Could it be…?

"That is, indeed, a move of my own creation. One of my proudest achievements, if I do say so myself," Cynthia smiled brightly, placing a hand against her chest. "And I still have another trick up my sleeve, if you'd care to see it. Vulpix; Freeze Dry!"

They had no time to react. Closing his eyes, Vulpix took in a deep breath and called onto the storm. As if the wind itself were obeying him, the hail stopped swirling in circles and retreated back to the one that had called it, until he was surrounded by a smaller, albeit much more powerful storm.

"I suggest you two move to the side," Cynthia raised her index finger, smiling.

"Vaa!"

Vulpix let out a piercing scream, commanding the storm to explode forward in a straight line. Half in fear and half in shock Inyssa grabbed Barry's arm and dragged him to the side before the wind could reach them. It froze the ground as it traveled, swallowing Kuro and Razen whole.

It took the mist about thirty seconds to dispel itself into the air. Inyssa looked back, lower lip shaking, and felt her heart jump to her throat as she saw Kuro's unconscious body. He laid on his back on top of a row of ice flows that had been formed by the attack. Most of the fur on his body was tinted white.

"What!?"

Barry's sudden yell startled her out of her shock. She turned first to see his dismayed expression and next towards Razen, who stood frozen to his knees and barely conscious. His muscles shook violently as he tried to free himself, to no avail.

"But… he's a water type!" Barry complained. "He's supposed to resist the cold!"

Inyssa stood similarly stunned, knowing not how to react. Cynthia didn't say anything for a few moments, instead choosing to silently congratulate her Vulpix as she returned him to his Pokeball. She headed towards them with the ease and nonchalance characteristic of her.

"What you meant to say is that he's resistant to ice attacks," she said. "A water Pokemon's outer thermal protection allows them to repel them easily. However, Freeze Dry is a move that creates a cold powerful enough to penetrate fur and skin. Then, since they have much more water inside them than any other type of Pokemon, they suffer the effects twice as much."

She turned her head to look at Razen, who could barely keep himself conscious, "I suggest you return him to his Pokeball, lest he goes into shock from the cold."

Barry did so without a second thought, and Inyssa returned Kuro a moment after. They then stood in silence, staring at the ground for what felt like much longer than a few seconds. They'd lost, swiftly and humiliatingly as Cynthia had predicted. Worse of all, it'd been in a two against one match, and not even while fighting one of her fully trained Pokemon.

Inyssa tried to swallow down her shame, though it went about as well as if she'd tried to eat a handful of gravel.

"Alright then!" Cynthia clapped her hands. "Shall we go to the festival? It should start any minute now."

A few seconds passed in silence.

"You're… not going to say anything about the battle?" Inyssa asked. "We kinda…"

"Sucked," Barry added, frowning.

Cynthia simply waved the matter off with a flick of her hand.

"Oh… trust me, you did better than many would've done," she said. "Besides, I hate when people try to console me after a loss; it always feels condescending. Instead I'd rather treat you to a wonderful day of festivities, so that you may wash down the bitter taste of defeat."

 

* * *

 

 

Cyrus stood still and silent in the middle of the crowded room, his breathing slow and his eyes set on nothing. Were it not for his intimidating presence, not one of the many Galactic grunts around him would've noticed him.

However all eyes were on him now, expectant and anxious. He could see the doubt in his subordinate's eyes; the slow creeping regret that had been building up thanks to their growing list of recent failures. He needed to change that.

 _Today is a good day for a miracle_ , he thought to himself.

"Jupiter." He spoke, and the entire room grew silent. "Are you ready?"

The woman shivered slightly at the sound of his voice, turning to look at him. Her uniform, for once, was ironed and cleaned and the bags under her eyes were considerably smaller. Cyrus had spent the last week coming up with a recipe for a strong tonic that would help her commander better endure the harsh effects of her hangovers. The last thing he needed was for their mission to fall because of something so feeble as that.

"Yes sir, I have the machine here with me," she replied, voice rough as sandpaper. In her left hand she held a small, electronic device akin to a metal ball with a button on it.

"Good. Remember that it is a weaker version of the one I'll be using. It will last only ten minutes." He didn't take his eyes off her as he spoke, which made Jupiter's shoulders tense up. "Head down directly to Mars' cell and retrieve Ditto; nothing else matters. Do you understand?"

"O-of course, sir. I will not let you down."

He gave a small, stiff nod and turned to his right, where Charon waited patiently, a stack of papers in hand. His half-moon glasses failed to hide the excitement in his eyes.

"Eager to see your experiment in action?" Cyrus asked, tone plain. "That is unbecoming of a Galactic commander, Charon. Instead I'd have you hope that everything goes according to plan."

The man grumbled under his breath, in a way that could've been understood as a  _Yes, sir_. Behind him, almost hidden by shadows, stood a bipedal, bird-like Pokemon. The tips of his white wings were colored red and black, and the way he folded them in front of him made it look as if he were wearing a tunic. His expression was remarkably blank.

"Make sure Xatu is following my brain waves, so that he may know at all times where I am," he reminded Charon. "The moment I give the signal, he must use Ally Switch. Do you understand?"

"Of course, sir."

"I expect the Unovan Project will be ready for deployment?" He phrased it in a way that made it clear it wasn't a question. "Along with the disrupting device?"

"Yes, of course. All you need to do is give the signal and it'll activate and come to you," he said. "Snapping your fingers should be enough."

Cyrus nodded once more, "And to all of you…" He barely rose the volume of his voice as he addressed the rest of the grunts around him. "Wait patiently here, and be alert. You know what your task is."

"Yes, sir!"

The cacophony of voices made him flinch, though not with irritation or anything of the like. How he wished that would've been the case…

Taking in a deep breath, he tasted the heavy silence around him for a few more moments. He felt so tired, even though he'd made sure to sleep a few hours the night before, in preparation.

He'd have to make do, he assured himself. Too much hung on the result of today's missions. If all went well, their plans might be able to be forwarded a few months ahead, a pleasant development indeed.

"Let us go, then," he said, turning towards the exit with cold, empty resolution.

 

* * *

 

 

"I still don't trust her."

Inyssa sighed in between each chomp of the cone of cotton candy in her hand. Next to her Barry held a similar one, though orange and twice as tall, like he'd requested it. Even so, he'd almost gotten through all of it, the boy's sweet tooth knowing no bounds.

All around them were the familiar sounds of enjoyment and jubilee, coming from the citizens of Celestic and the few outsiders like them who'd come to have a good time. Luckily this particular festival was not as obnoxiously loud as the one they'd visited in Solaceon, thank god. If there was one thing she liked about the people of this dingy, old town was that they knew how to appreciate silence. People rarely raised their volume or shouted, for their voice had the strange knack of being heard more widely and easily than most.

It was as if the wind itself came to a halt for them. Nowhere had this been more clear than with Cynthia and her grandmother: whenever they spoke it was as if the world were holding its breath. Not even nature would dare interrupt them.

Coincidentally, the strange blonde woman was the very topic Inyssa and Barry were discussing at the moment.

"You're just mad 'cause we lost to her." Barry shrugged, and a moment after debated whether to take a step away from his friend. "Don't give me that murder-y look, you know it's true! She beat us fair and square."

"Your face is a square," she grumbled into her cotton candy as she took another bite. "It's not just that, though. I don't know why but I get this weird vibe whenever I'm around her. I feel like I'm missing something." She scrunched up her face. "You're telling me she's an archeologist and that's it? And she's the most skilled trainer we've met so far?"

Barry shrugged, "She told us she's been training for years, right? You're being a conspiracy nut job." He pointed at her with what little remained of his cotton candy. "Though now that you mention it, we never got around to ask her how she knew about those weird plates."

"We'll get a chance to ask her when she shows us the ruins later." She waved him off with a flick of her hand. "Now let's go where she told us; I think something's about to start in the podium there."

The festival itself grew from the part of the town that climbed up to the side of Mt Coronet, and was situated in many streets from the top of the town and going down in a slight spiral. A few streets down lay the park they'd met Carolina in, which served as the main podium for the event and the very end of it. The park was kind of like a stadium and the streets of the festival were the stands, so to speak.

Cynthia had suggested they head to the park first, since there would be some kind of speech to begin the festival the right way. She hadn't much idea what that meant, but she felt strangely excited for some reason. It was as if she was forgetting something important, which was par for the course with her shitty memory.

They moved down, as close to the park as they possibly could, though it wasn't easy since almost the entirety of the rest of the town headed there was well. Since there was nothing that made her more horribly anxious than being stuck in a sea of people, she decided to stay two streets back along with Barry. Far away enough so that she didn't have to rub elbows with people, but not so much that they couldn't hear what was being said.

At the edges of the street and mounted atop black tripods sat the cameras and speakers that had been set up for the event. Apparently it would be broadcasted to the entire world, though if Inyssa's previous experiences were anything to go by she was pretty sure not many folk outside of Sinnoh would be interested in such an event, much less the people of Kanto.

"Look! A guy's walking to the podium," Barry pointed excitedly.

Indeed, a short man with a suit walked to the wood stand built around the gazebo, stopping in front of the makeshift microphone they'd installed there.

"Before the festival begins in proper, there is someone who would like to have a word with all of you." He spoke with a monotone voice. "I hereby present you; the Champion of Sinnoh."

Inyssa's heart jumped to her throat, which choked out the gasp she would've let out otherwise. Next to her Barry's eyes went wide and he unconsciously let go of the cotton candy, letting it fall to the ground.

"I… I can't believe I forgot!" Inyssa yelled, putting both hands on her hat. "That's the entire reason we came here! I forgot the Champion was gonna come too!"

"S-shoot!" Barry stammered, looking as if he'd been doused with icy water. "N-Niss! Is my hair okay!? How do I look!? Do you think we can get an autograph or…"

He put one hand on her shoulder, but she was next to catatonic with fear and anticipation. The Champion… she was going to meet the Champion. She wanted to say something, to put on a fierce face should the woman look her direction when she walked up the podium, but she was completely frozen.

_Shit, shit! What do I do? Do I walk to her after the speech and challenge her? Will she let me do that? What if she's nothing like I imagined her? What if she's awful? Oh dear Synn above what the hell do I do!?_

She didn't have much time to waddle in her anxiety, as someone appeared from behind the podium and started walking up the tiny stairs towards the microphone. Like it had happened before, it felt as if the world itself had gone to a pause, waiting for the woman to act and speak. From afar Inyssa could hear the thump of her shoes against the wooden floor, which perfectly mirrored the frenzied beating of her heart.

The woman delicately put one hand on the base of the microphone, interlacing the fingers of the other with the cable as she lifted it up. Her stormy grey eyes were unmistakable even from that distance, and her beautiful blonde hair shone as if it were made of sunlight.

Cynthia's lips curled up, and the entire world felt the weight of her smile.

"Welcome, each and every single one of you, to the Festival of Spirit," she spoke, her voice as smooth as the wind. "My name is Cynthia Artemis; I am the Lorekeeper and Champion of the great nation of Sinnoh."

She paused for a moment, letting her words linger as she breathed in.

"I would like to have a word with all of you, if I may be allowed that."


	41. Apénanti

Inyssa could do little but stare in disbelief as Cynthia began to speak.

"My dear, dear citizens of Sinnoh, and even those watching from beyond our borders, let us bask in a short moment of reflection and reverence, before the festivities truly begin." She spoke candidly, her voice carrying a latent, burning strength which made it impossible not to want to listen to her. "Normally my opening speech would be short and to the point, but our current situation necessitates that I elaborate further.

"It is to my own displeasure that I've decided to do this. I would want nothing more than to let my people celebrate on this fine day, but as a Champion I must not forget the duties I've been assigned with. As such, here is what I must say…"

Her gaze went from one end of the crowd to the other.

"Twelve years ago in this very day, Sinnoh's forces battled Kanto in the heart of their region; Viridian City. That day, the war was ended. That day, thousands of innocents died an early death, sprouted by the darkness of the human race." Cynthia's fingers gripped the microphone a bit too strongly, her stormy grey eyes flashing with anger. "Some would say we won that day, though if there is any victory in bloodshed then it is not one I'd want to claim for myself. True; I was the one who led the last strike, the one who dealt the final blow, but I take no pride in this. Just as a doctor would take no pride in cutting off a person's limb once it's began rotting.

"Many of you must be wondering what I mean by this. Let me be clear; the war against Kanto was a completely unnecessary one. Many would call me a liar, unpatriotic or worse things for pointing this out, but it is the absolute truth. It was a petty conflict born out of the greed of those in power at the time; a squabble over land and trade rights that had no business escalating into an all out war. It was a clear sign that those who ruled us were weak, spirit-less cowards who only cared for themselves, and were willing to throw as many trainers and soldiers to the problem as it would be necessary. It was a sign that we, as a nation, needed to change. And change did come, even if it was at a great cost. Let me elaborate on what I mean:

"Even as a young girl, I realized that what many knew as spirit was not a symbol or a myth. Growing up in this town, surrounded by all of you, I came to understand that inside each human being lies an ember, a fire which can never go out. It is what gives us the courage to face every new day with fierce determination, it is what makes the sun rise and the grass grow. It is the primal, all encompassing strength that has allowed us to come so far as a species. It is our emotion, our valor and our wisdom, and so much more than that.

"However, much like any flame, our spirit is prone to outside forces. Many do not have the necessary strength to take care of it, to help it grow as it is supposed to do. As such, lacking the inner warmth they could never achieve on their own, they search for other ways to fill the emptiness in their chest. Greed, wrath, envy and despair. They quench themselves with it, wallowing in their own weakness as if it were a badge of pride. It is a sickness, one that can spread from person to person via many means.

"I realized that if I were not to do something, the entirety of Sinnoh might fall to such a pest. Even if we won the war, those in charge would've still been there, attributing themselves victory and growing their own reserves while letting the rest of us to rot. As such, I did what anyone in my position would've done: I led a strike against Sinnoh, my beloved region, in order to save it from its sickness. I defeated the previous Champion, dismantled the top and created the League Association in less than a year, burning and quenching under my feet every last remnant of the weakness of spirit my previous superiors had shown.

"After, it was only a matter of months before I was able to lead the final strike against Kanto, though not without help. It was the determination and bravery of my fellow trainers which made this possible. Many would say it was a quick turnaround, but I believe it could've been a lot quicker. Every second we weren't working towards ending the war the sickness spread, and innocent people died. As I said, there is no pride to be found in what we did, but it had to be done.

"Most of you must be wondering why I'm telling you this. The war ended long ago, of course, and ever since we've bloomed as a nation and as a people. But I'm afraid to say that our fight, while long and painful, has not ended yet. I… well, I'm sure you've all been made aware of the group of terrorists who call themselves Team Galactic."

In the few seconds of silence she allowed her audience, a wave of whispers and general sounds of discomfort were heard all around. They were silenced as soon as she began to speak again.

"Many have lodged complaints against the Association, and against my desire to extend the fight past ourselves. They believe we should be the ones to destroy this hateful group, without realizing that their soldiers are not our greatest threat. It is their ideology, something that all of us, as a nation, must fight against in unison.

"I know we're all are tired of such conflicts. The war is still fresh in our memory, as well as the faces of those we loved, those who lost their life to make Sinnoh a better place. Still, it is precisely the reason why we must not let such an ideology grow further. Should we rest, should we allow them to have a voice, they will expand not only through Sinnoh but throughout the entire world. If we don't act now, we might as well be preparing for another war. We need to be better than those who came before us; we need to be able to learn from history.

"We are all responsible for what happens to our nation. Each and every single one of us, has a chance at changing fate. It is time we seize it."

The feeble silence which followed her words was soon broken as a wave of cheers and clapping deafened her. She allowed herself a loving smile as she stared at her audience, before raising a hand to let them know she wanted to speak again.

"With that said, it wouldn't be fair to let you all wallow in worry and fear in such a beautiful, sunny day." She looked up at the sky, a hopeful smile stretching across her face. "Let us rejoice for now, eating and laughing and loving to our heart's content, for there is no better way to–"

Her voice trailed off. She held her arms raised to the side, frozen, as her smile died on her lips. All those who'd been listening returned to reality with a jolt, like Magikarp who'd been suddenly taken out of the water. Free from the alluring spell of her voice, they began to wonder and exchange looks of confusion with each other.

Why had Cynthia stopped? What was she staring at? And why…?

"Such a long time it's been, and yet you haven't changed at all."

The voice which erupted through the speakers made most folk's blood run cold. Sharp as a knife, unsettling as nails on a chalkboard. And yet it held the same effect as that of the Champion; it traveled through the air as a command, urging everyone to hear it.

"You call for violence, to crush under your heel the only threat against your rule, and yet you dare think yourself better than those you've usurped?" The voice traveled through the crowd like icy wind. "Your hypocrisy knows no bounds, my dear Champion. Only fools and mindless fanatics could be swayed by your empty words."

If anyone would've been staring at Cynthia then, they would've seen realization flash across her eyes, followed by the tips of her shoulders shaking ever so slightly.

"Show yourself!" Her voice echoed through the crowd, no longer amplified by the now dead microphone in her hand. "If you wish to speak nonsense then at least have the gall to say it to my face!"

"Of course, that bravado of yours is as present as usual," the stranger spoke once more. "To think you have to raise your voice just to be on par with me, it speaks volumes of how faint the power of your so called spirit is."

Cynthia parted her lips to reply, but then her eyes fell on a shape in the distance. Her words died on her throat.

Most people, including Inyssa and Barry, followed the trajectory of her gaze and looked over their shoulders. The unmistakable shape of a person stood a couple streets behind and up, the sun casting shadows on most of his body. He waited a moment and then began to walk at a brisk pace towards the park, hands behind his back.

Once he was at a reasonable distance they could make out his appearance. He was a tall man with combed back, faded blue hair. His face was unnaturally pale, skin looking almost stretched out, and his eyes were as cold and hollow as the harshest of winters. He wore a black and grey uniform, with a yellow  _G_  stamped over his heart.

Inyssa felt her stomach drop, and next to her Barry let out a choked gasp. It was him; the same man they'd met at Lake Valor and in front of the statue in Eterna.

"I came here to talk, Champion, and yet you seem ready and eager to hurt me. Your over reliance on might and violence demonstrates not only your own weakness, but the very sickness that has spread through Sinnoh thanks to the likes of you." He spoke without any intonation whatsoever. "However, I agree that introductions are in order. Only then will people around the world be able to put a face to the truth I am about to tell."

He stopped before reaching the rest of the audience, about a stone throw's away from a frozen Inyssa and Barry. For a single moment it seemed as if he veered his gaze towards them, but once they blinked they saw him staring at the Champion again.

"My name is Cyrus," he declared, tone lacking any kind of emotion. "I am the leader of Team Galactic."

 

* * *

 

 

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

Sarah's nose crinkled ever so slightly, the smallest sign of irritation she could allow herself to show outwardly. Other than that she stood as firm as a statue, arms crossed so tightly it would've been difficult to untie them from each other. Her gaze was set on the steel door in front of her, which led to the maximum security cell.  _Her_  maximum security sell.

"I am perfectly sure, boss. Thank you for asking."

Just in case the dryness of her voice wasn't enough, she looked up and to the side, her eyes falling on the man who'd spoken. He was tall and slim, features which were carefully polished into elegance by his garnet-colored suit and black shirt underneath. Wavy sheets of satin-like purple hair fell to his shoulders, the same color as those prying and curious eyes behind his oval shaped glasses. He stood next to her calmly, like a willow bending towards the wind. If he noticed the exasperation on her face, he did not show it.

"Well, whatever it takes to keep me away from that god forsaken festival in Celestic," he sighed. "Take all the time you need, Sarah. I'll be waiting upstairs, ready to intervene should anything happen."

Her gaze veered down for a moment, towards the belt slightly hidden by the fold of his suit. Six polished Ultraballs adorned it, each surely containing a Pokemon more powerful than any she'd ever seen, not that she knew much about the subject. She wasn't a trainer, after all. Still, she could recognize someone's expertise by the way they carried themselves, and the man next to her wore the title of Elite Four member down to the marrow of his bones.

"Thanks, Lucian." She smiled for the first time that day, the muscles of her cheeks feeling strangely sore. "I'm going in."

She pressed the back side of her business card against the electronic panel of the door, which unlocked after flashing a few lights and letting out electronic chirps. It opened up to a wide, poorly illuminated room divided into two sections by a thick sheet of bulletproof glass in the middle of it.

The other side sported a modest, somewhat comfy living room. Sink, toilet, bed, table and of course two security cameras filming every angle of the room, protected by small cages made of the same material as the transparent wall. The wall which separated Sarah from the young, redheaded woman at the other side.

She only hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. She'd been hesitant about transferring those apprehended in the Veilstone incident to a prison as strict and high security as that of Stark mountain, but after learning more about the true extent of Mars' abilities she understood the reason for it.

They'd finally been able to transfer her to her own room, after one of the guards came up with the idea of using paralyzing gas on her from a distance. It had taken a lot more than they thought necessary, but after the woman fell unconscious they were able to treat her most serious wounds and transfer her to this room. Not that she'd ever tried anything to escape, strangely enough.

Mars breathed in deeply as she sat against the furthermost wall of her cell. She tilted her head to the side, opening her eyes lazily like she'd just woken up. She parted her lips as if she were about to speak, but simply let out a long yawn which showed Sarah every one of her teeth.

"Now that's what I call a nap." She stretched one arm up, grabbing the shoulder with her other hand. Her voice was slow and throaty. "Hello, Sarah. Nice of you to come visit."

"I've come to ask you some questions, since you seem to have recovered from your injuries," said Sarah, voice taciturn. "Your cooperation on the matter will be to your own benefit."

Sarah tried her best not to imbue her voice with any kind of emotion, nor to show any sort of recognition. It was not her job, after all.

However, she didn't fail to notice the glint of a smile on Mars' cold eyes, "Always so professional, eh? Well, I can respect a woman who takes her job seriously," she said. "I'm still sorry about what I did to your son, by the way. I hope you're not still mad about that."

Words got caught up on her throat, along with something heavy and hot which she had to swallow down.

"I would like you to tell me whatever you can about Team Galactic." Her tone was plain, unnaturally so, as she spoke. "Since you seem to be the only member who hasn't lost her memory following the events of…"

"Then again, it'd be hypocritical of you to judge me," Mars interrupted, the corners of her lip forming the shadow of a smile. "At least I didn't kill Barry, even if I gave him a nice little cut on the cheek for him to remember me." She bit her bottom lip, laughter bubbling under her voice. "You've done much, much worse than me, Sarah, so I'd appreciate it if you got off that high Ponyta of yours."

Sarah's shoulders tensed tightly, her expression wavering for a moment. It was a miracle Mars didn't spontaneously combust from the sheer fury behind the stare directed at her.

"Where are your headquarters located?" she asked. "I have a map with me; if you wish you could simply point at the exact location and…"

"Not gonna react to my taunts, huh? How boring." Mars threw her head back, letting out an exaggerated sigh. "Mind if I take another nap? I'd rather that than continue with this dull conversation."

"If you're not willing to cooperate, then I will take my leave," said Sarah. "I'll have your food rations shortened. Hopefully it will convince you to be a little more cooperative."

Mars shrugged, "You could do that. Or you could stop wasting both our time and ask me what you actually want to know."

Her last word was followed by an echoing, physical silence. All traces of humor fell from her expression like a cracked mask, like an invisible veil.

They locked eyes; Mars' were as sharp as cold as before, but this time they were also sane and terribly serious. Across them flashed a recognition which Sarah couldn't ignore, it was the same she'd been trying so hard to contain. She felt the silence turning her limbs stiff, holding her hostage.

She could think of only one way to break it. She spoke before her mind could process the words.

"What happened to you, Siffa?"

Mars unconsciously raised her lower lip, as if her old name had hit her harder than she'd expected it to. Her body looked tense, like the string of a bow drawn to its breaking point.

"I tumbled once, and never figured out how to stop." She smiled, though it looked forced. "I guess you could say my naiveté and my bad decisions got mixed together at the worst of times."

Sarah hadn't expected her to actually answer, much less with what sounded like honesty. Then again she hadn't expected to ask either. As she stood there, unsure of what to say, it became clear that at some point the interrogation had grown past her control.

She took another, closer look at Mars. It had been clear as day in the photo, but in person it was far worse. The image of the young, bright eyed Siffa contrasted so violently with the woman in front of her that she didn't want to believe they were the same person. Mars was a terrorist and a murderer, while Siffa was…

That train of thought came to a sudden halt. Ashamed, she had to admit to herself that she had no idea what Siffa had been before she suddenly became Shadi and Ciro's travel partner. Not because of lack of effort, either. After long hours of investigation Sarah was not able to find a single document or ID or even a mention of anyone named Siffa that fit the girl's profile. As if she had never existed to begin with, evidence to the contrary sitting in front of her notwithstanding.

_So she's either a ghost or…_

The possibility had been dancing on her mind for the past few days. She didn't want to believe it; those had been nothing but rumors after all. And yet…

_No family nor a documented life. No fingerprints. Extremely adept at hand to hand combat, stealth and assassination…_

Back during the thick of the war, before the new Champion took hold of her title, rumors had spread of a new breed of soldiers developed by the military elites. Rumors of children who had been kidnapped while young and trained in the art of assassination. Rumors of the terrifying monsters they became, their eyes cold and ruthless and their steps as hushed as a whisper.

As a young lieutenant, Sarah often ordered her soldiers to stop spreading such obvious lies and instead focus on the task ahead of them. Back when she was naïve as well, back when she still believed in the morals of a Sinnoh she loved so much.

She didn't want to believe it then, but now it seemed almost insulting to ignore the evidence she'd been presented with. Looking into Mars' eyes, she could imagine someone like her going through such a grueling and horrifying childhood.

What didn't make sense, however, was what came after. If her theory was true then how did someone like Siffa go from killing people to being a normal teenager and then to becoming a terrorist? Something was missing, and it irritated her to no end.

"You're not denying it, then?" Sarah asked. "You really are Siffa."

Another twitch of her lower lip, though slightly more controlled.

"You could say that. I don't go by that name anymore, though."

In a distant part of her mind, Sarah felt relieved to hear that. The last thing she wanted was to associate the Siffa she knew with the criminal in front of her.

She unconsciously crossed her arms, as if bracing herself for her next question, "What happened that day in Victory Road?" Her voice felt coarse in her throat. "You were there, weren't you?"

Mars nodded almost robotically, her eyes distant.

"It wasn't anything unexpected, even if I personally didn't see it coming," she said. "Shadi took her ambitions a step too far. She'd groomed us to be the perfect little slaves and didn't like it when we finally decided to stand up to her. She killed Ciro and tried to do the same to me, though she wasn't able to finish me off."

To say she wasn't expecting such an answer would've been putting it lightly. This time she couldn't help it as her mouth hung slightly agape, the impassibleness of her face breaking completely at Mars' casual and unabashed honestly.

"I find that hard to believe," she said, voice thin.

"So did I at first," shrugged Mars. "Though thankfully, denial doesn't last long in presence of the truth."

She tried to think of what to say or ask next, still baffled. That couldn't… that couldn't possibly be true, could it? Shadi was… well, perhaps not a good person but definitely a law-abiding citizen, and the one accusing her of murder was an assassin herself. What reason did she have to believe it? So what if she sounded sincere? It was utterly ridiculous.

"What happened after?" Sarah asked against her better judgment. "Where is Shadi?"

Mars formed a lopsided smile, "Wouldn't I love to know. I haven't seen her since; though not for lack of trying."

Sarah remembered the photo she'd been shown of Shadi's Charizard flying through the night a month back or so. The mind-bogglingly size of the beast, the dark figure riding on her back and the full moon shining above them both. She remembered the chills she got back then, how a small flame of hope had sprouted in her chest. Hope that, maybe, Shadi was still alive and they could find her. Hope that Inyssa could be reunited with her. Hope that Sarah could at least be partly responsible for returning that innocent brightness to the girl's eyes that had vanished ever since her sister's disappearance.

It was a long shot, and it was likely that Mars was outright lying to her, but she didn't have any other leads to follow as it was..

"What more can you tell me?" she asked. "How did you end up…?"

Her wrist started beeping, a most unwelcomed sound that startled to the point of letting out a small gasp. Frowning, she looked down at the bulky Pokétch on her right arm whose screen was flashing red with the word  _Urgent_  written in black.

It took a considerable amount of restraint not to throw the thing across the room.

"Behave yourself," she ordered. "I'll be back to talk to you later."

She turned around to exit the room, but Mars' voice caught her before she could reach the door.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," she grinned. "I have a feeling I won't staying here much longer."

Sarah's hand hovered over the doorknob. She turned around slowly.

"What are you…?"

There was a sound like the cackle of electricity, followed by the light in the room flickering off. For an instant there was silence, until it turned back on again, much weaker this time.

"The backup generator?" Sarah whispered to herself. "How…"

The door swung open, the only thing preventing it hitting Sarah in the face being her quick reflexes as she took a step back. Lucian appeared at the sill, face unnaturally pale and eyes wide behind his oval shaped glasses.

"Sarah, we are needed in the upper floors!" He spoke swiftly and with authority, barely raising his voice. "The power has gone down, the alarms haven't sounded yet and I can't contact the wards near the surface."

She allowed herself a short nod before she bolted towards the hallway outside, almost crushing her boss against the side of the door. All thoughts of Mars and Shadi left her mind as her body sunk back into the flight or fight response it was so accustomed to. Lucian followed soon after, locking the electronic door behind him.

Inside the room, Mars leaned back and closed her eyes expectantly. She smiled a terrible smile, waiting for what she knew was to come.

 

* * *

 

 

Metchi took her first step into Lake Valor, a step which was a lot more resolute than she expected.

The water shimmered gold under her feet in a straight line, the psychic barrier she'd deployed riding her of the need for a boat. Monferno walked behind her, clicking his tongue nervously at being surrounded by about a million gallons of what he hated most. Azelf had gone quiet for the past few minutes, though she could feel its presence like a reassuring blanket of warmth all around her.

She set foot on the edge of the small island in the middle of the lake. A few feet ahead sat a pyramid-shaped cave the size of a small house, though she knew that was only the surface of it. The rock was dark and smooth, almost like glass, and even through the countless years of wind and water erosion she could make out traces of ancient carvings on the outside. She remembered the glittering, white stones that comprised most of the mountain Sootopolis was located in; this felt like the exact opposite of that.

Looking at it, a foreign wave of nostalgia filled her chest and she felt her eyes sting. She'd never been in this place before, but she could feel it calling to her, as if it were her own home. Some of Azelf's longing was intertwined with hers as well, which a few days sooner would've surprised her. The legendary Pokemon wasn't usually so keen on sharing its own emotions with her.

"All right then."

The entrance led to a poorly built set of stairs, leading deeper into the cavern. The inside was as dark as a Pyroar's maw, which is why she was grateful for Monferno's fire lighting the way as they walked. It would've been poor fitting for her to slip on one of the steps and break her neck after all that had happened.

As thin and claustrophobic as the downward hallway was, Metchi was surprised at the actual size of the room it led to. She could barely see the edge of it in front of her and at the sides. The floor, walls and ceiling not only were made from the same material as the outside but they were sprinkled with strange, sparkling blue stones that gave off a strong enough light to illuminate about half of the place, leaving small patches of darkness all over.

 _Chargestones_ , she thought with a wave of excitement.  _Never thought I'd see some outside of Unova._

Her enthusiasm was short lived, however, as she took a few more steps into the cavern. To say she was startled would've been a lie. Sure, she'd been expecting to be ambushed ever since Shadi's warning, not to mention she could physically feel someone's presence inside ever since she set foot on the island.

What she didn't expect was for only one person to be inside.

Two things stood in the middle of the room. Hovering a few feet above ground was Azelf's hollow body, its tiny arms and round head hanging forward lifelessly. The red gems on its forehead and tails had turned almost black, the light inside them evaporated long ago.

Next to it, arms crossed and eyes set on Metchi, was a man wearing Team Galactic's uniform. He was shorter than her and quite less intimidating, though she knew better than to take something like that for granted. His blue, crescent-shaped hair glistened with the light of the chargestones around him and his normally soft and friendly expression had grown rough and sour.

Metchi didn't take another step, unsure of what to do. She'd expected an entire platoon of Galatic grunts, or perhaps to be assaulted by powerful Pokemon the moment she took a step into the cave. But he seemed to be completely alone, and quite free of worry at that.

Laugh sprouted from the depths of her stomach and she was unable to contain it. The sound echoed off the walls, making it reverberate unnaturally. Saturn raised an eyebrow.

"Wow…" she whispered, shaking her head. "Not gonna lie, dude. Pretty shitty ambush you got going on here."

 

* * *

 

 

Cyrus' declaration cut through the crowd like a knife.

Those closest to him –with the exception of Inyssa and Barry– took sudden steps back in an instinctive attempt to get as far away from him as possible. Those further back and on the edges let out gasps and shifted uncomfortably, silently wondering what they should do. A bubbling, growing anxiety could be felt through the entirety of the festival as the seconds passed by. Shock and fear were slowly replaced by anger and indignation as they began whispering, their expressions growing darker and their voices raising in pitch.

"You..."

Silence swallowed the crowd once more as Cynthia spoke, the sheer fury in her voice like the cackle of lightning before a storm.

The Champion jumped from the stand and began walking forward. People cleared out of her path without her asking them to, for no sane person would've stood in her way. She stopped before reaching the first hill leading to the road upwards, and though she stood in the middle of the crowd it would've been impossible not to notice her. Those standing closer to her could feel a weightless, invisible warmth emanating from her, as if inside of her chest lived a roaring fire.

"How dare you come here, on this of all days." Cynthia did not raise her voice, not that she would've needed to for everyone in the crowd to hear her. "If you think I'll stand here and listen to a terrorist blabbering nonsense…" She flicked her wrist almost unconsciously, producing an Ultraball on her hand. "…then it is clear you have truly lost your mind, Cyrus."

The man did not move an inch, nor did he seem intimidated by the Champion's words. Looking down at her from his spot –one that he'd carefully chosen as to give himself the proper imagery– he simply bowed his head slightly, as if greeting an old friend. The gesture was polite mockery, of course, but those who didn't know their history couldn't know that.

"The first thing you do when confronted by someone who only wishes to speak is to threaten them with violence?"

He saw as Cynthia's eyebrows formed a line over the bridge of her nose. She had to know that the smart thing was to capture him immediately, but she'd been called out in front of cameras that were transmitting the event to the entire world. Indeed, Cyrus had chosen very carefully the way in which he would face her.

"I have nothing to say to someone like you," said Cynthia. "You are not above me, Cyrus, despite what the place you're standing in might make you believe. Do you think the people of Sinnoh are unaware of what Team Galactic has done?"

"I'm sure the Association has had the time of their lives spreading easy to swallow lies about us," he said. "Tell me, what are non-trainers to do if they find the state of the world as unfair as we do? Is the only legal way to dethrone you, and attempt to change the world, to defeat you in a Pokemon battle? How can that be considered fair?"

Cynthia's fingers tightened around the Pokeball, their tips turning pale, "I am more than open to any kind of dialogue with those who aren't terrorists. The title of Champion has existed for a long time, and it is the best way to ensure that only those strong in spirit…"

"There you go again," sighed Cyrus. "According to you, only those with a strong spirit are worthy to become Champion? Well, you seem to have forgotten a second, far more important requisite: they also need to be Pokemon trainers." He put emphasis on the last two words, the shadow of resentment behind his voice. "Since you come from a well off family I'm sure you've never thought about this, but do you have any idea just how expensive becoming a trainer is for the average person? The cost of a trainer card, a Pókedex, equipment, travel expenses… it is simply unavailable for most people."

"There are plenty of free programs and scholarships available for those in need who wish to become trainers," Cynthia rebutted. "I've made sure of that myself."

"And what of those who, for other reasons, cannot become one? Those who have to take care of a family or a business or who simply lack the physical capabilities? Do they not deserve the chance to change the world simply because their circumstances are less favorable than those of the spoiled, rich brats who flood our region like pests?" He stopped to breathe, letting his words set in. "Isn't it despicable? It seems only those who partake in violence and are blessed with money and a normal life are capable of truly changing the world. We, as a nation, glorify conflict and personal pride instead of open dialogue and thoughtfulness."

With one swift movement he turned towards the closest camera, which sat atop a tripod being manned by two people. He spread both arms as if wanting to embrace the audience he knew he had, going so far as to attempt one of the smiles Saturn had taught him how to imitate.

"I know I am not welcome in this town, nor in most of Sinnoh, but I still urge all those for whom my words rang true to listen. I want to address first and foremost those whose indignity at the Champion's speech is the same as mine. I want to address the parents, children and lovers of those who tragically lost their lives in the war, those who weren't fortunate enough to be Pokemon trainers, to be granted the protection such a title entailed." He lowered his arms slightly, raising his chin as he kept speaking. "True, the war was ended by trainers, but we seldom forget that it was started –and not majorly fought– by them as well. Throughout the entirety of it the ratio of civilian soldiers to trainers was ten to one, and yet it is only the latter whom we celebrate as heroes, those who had the least to lose and the most to gain."

Cyrus turned his gaze once more towards Cynthia, pointing a finger at her.

"I speak the truth; trainers are nothing but a menace!" He raised his voice for the first time, sending painful chills down the spines of all close to him. "This so called spirit of theirs is a sickness. Their competitive nature, their proclivity towards violence and their coveted pride do nothing but paint the entire of Sinnoh in a negative light. If unchecked, I assure you that such behavior will lead us all toward another war. And, just like last time, it will be all but the Pokemon trainers who will suffer because of it."

There was a certain flair to the way he ended his speech. A slow raise of his pitch, a slightly bent knee and the seemingly coincidental placement of his palm in front of his stomach as he bowed. It was a subtle enough gesture that most people wouldn't pick up on it, but it definitely added a good last impression to his words.

Cynthia, who'd been silent for the last part of his speech, took a deep breath and looked up at him. The previous anger was still there, but it had now been joined by what appeared to be melancholy.

"I've heard enough," she said, closing her eyes for a moment, lost in thought. "I don't care what your intentions are, Cyrus. You made a mistake coming here today." She took a decisive step forward, chin raised high. "Maybe your words would've had some weight before what happened in Veilstone, but now…"

Cyrus laughed. It was such a dissonant, completely out of place gesture coming from him that Cynthia was left unable to keep speaking, eyes wide in surprise. His was a fake, premeditated laugh but she knew no one else listening would be able to discern that, not with how much he seemed to have practiced it.

Still, Cynthia had heard his real laugh many years ago when she still considered it one of her favorite sounds, and knew that what she was hearing was not it.

"Ah… Veilstone." Cyrus' sharp smile stretched across his face. "I was wondering when you'd bring it up against me. You really outdid yourself in Veilstone; didn't you? I can't help but admire your cunning, despite how despicable your actions were."

Cynthia reeled back, "W-what?"

"Tell me, Champion, what possible reason could I have for sending my men to attack a city such as Veilstone in the middle of the day?" He shook his head, as if finding the idea utterly ridiculous. "What would we gain from it, except for the spite and hatred of the people of Sinnoh? And ignoring that, even if we did lead an attack, what are the chances that not a single citizen was fatally wounded? Almost as if those alleged Team Galactic members were ordered to hold back.

"Yes… you certainly thought it through, Champion. To think the Association would go as far as to impersonate us and attack their own people just to smear the name of Team Galactic…" He tilted his head to the side, gaze falling on Cynthia. "Then again, you are quite familiar with those kinds of tactics, aren't you?"

The realization of what Cyrus was implying fell on Cynthia like a bolt of lightning. Her eyes went wide, the grey in them cackling with disbelief. She took one unconscious step forward, the impact of it sending an invisible shockwave of heat all around her, barely a breeze of the storm of hatred burning in her chest. She looked as if she were about to heave from indignation alone.

"How… dare you…"

She took another step, looking ready to jump and physically assault Cyrus herself, when another voice broke through the high-strung silence.

"That's not true!"

All eyes turned towards Inyssa, even those of Cyrus and Cynthia, the latter of which looked as if she'd been startled out of her murderous rage.

She didn't know exactly why she'd decided to speak, and as she felt the gaze of everyone on her she suddenly froze. Maybe it was because of the sheer indignation of that man telling such a bold faced lie, or perhaps it was because for a moment, Inyssa saw in the Champion's eyes the same terrible anger as in those of Nyss', all those years ago when she stood in front of that painting. The same hallowed expression; as if both women were ready to burn down the whole world.

Inyssa tried to say more, but no words came out. Then she felt the pleasant weight of a familiar hand on her shoulder, followed by Barry's voice echoing through the valley.

"She's right, we were there!" He hollered. "We were the ones attacked by Team Galactic and we know they were the real ones! That man is lying!"

His voice was like a warm gust of wind; Inyssa felt as it lifted the heaviness that had set into her chest. All around her people shook their heads or looked startled as if they'd been woken up from some sort of trance. First they imitated Barry's expression. Then they began to yell and holler like him; throwing insults and incoherent yells at Cyrus, until the entirety of the festival was one, single voice full of indignity and rage.

"I see; you two must be the Champion's pets."

The crowd's yelling almost came to a halt once again, Cyrus' voice transmitted through the speakers feeling like cold water running down their backs.

"Inyssa Dawn and Barry Paladino, the star trainers who are sweeping through the region," he said, emulating sarcasm with his tone. "How convenient that they are always in the same place where Team Galactic appears, ready to take them down. Almost as if they were meant to. Almost as if their rise to notoriety has been meticulously planned."

Niss' let out a scoff, feeling her blood running hot, "Come and say that to my face you zombie-looking piece of sh–!"

"I see the rumors about your rotten attitude have not been exaggerated," said Cyrus. "Something I'm sure every person you've met in your journey has had to deal with by now. Is this really the kind of person we want representing us as a nation? Is this what counts as Champion material nowadays?"

"Cyrus!" Cynthia's howl broke through the air, startling everyone in the crowd. "I have allowed you to badmouth me and my peers, but if you think I'll let you talk like that to children…!"

"I simply say what those with common sense are thinking. What option do I have when the government is bent on painting me and my associates in such a terrible light?" He shook his head. "Tell me, Champion, how many Galactic grunts have you managed to apprehend so far? There was no record of what happened in Floaroma nor Eterna, except for the fact that many of my people were found dead. And yet the only time you do manage to catch some of them; they refuse to divulge important information to this so called investigation?"

There was a moment of silence, carefully constructed by Cyrus so everyone could process what he'd said. Cynthia seemed as if she were about to reply, but it was clear he'd caught her off guard.

"Are you telling me that you haven't made that information available to the public, my dear Champion? About how not a single one of the supposed Galactic grunts that were captured in the Veilstone attack have revealed anything about my group? How can that be, when the Association counts with every method of interrogation known to mankind?" He turned to the cameras as he asked the question. "It's not hard to see the truth behind your hollow lies."

It happened then. He saw the change in Cynthia's expression; the same he was accustomed to whenever he used to drive her into a corner in their arguments. He saw her fingers clench into fists, her nose flaring and the way her shoulders stood stiff as iron.

She'd reached the limit of her patience, but it was already too late. His words had already been heard by the rest of the world. Even if he were to fail his mission, the damage to the Champion's pride would remain.

"I will not hear another word," Cynthia said, taking in a deep breath. "I'll defeat you here and now, Cyrus. Then we'll see how truthful your claims are."

She raised her hand, pointing the Ultraballl towards him. A moment after the crowd erupted once more in cheers and screams, half insults thrown at Cyrus and half garbled yells of encouragement towards their Champion.

He sighed, raising his hand as well. However there didn't seem to be any kind of Pokeball in it.

"Very well. If violence is how you wish to resolve this then I have no choice but to comply," he said. "But I want everyone watching to remember… I was not the one to pull the trigger first."

Pressing thumb against index, Cyrus snapped his fingers once. There was an instant of nothing and then an electric cackle was heard all around the festival. Those closest to the cameras and speakers heard as something short-circuited inside them, followed by sparks as the devices turned off, dead.

"You…" Cynthia narrowed her eyes. "That's enough! Lorencia, come o–!"

She pressed the button of the Ultraball, lips curled into an expectant smile. A second went by. Nothing happened.

For the first time since they'd met her, Inyssa saw the barest hints of panic flash across the Champion's eyes. Hurriedly he pressed the button again, but the result was much the same. With her other hand she reached into her belt and took out another one, but as she pressed the button it failed to open as well.

"Wh–" She looked down at the Ultraballs in her hands, disbelief clear in her face. "Why aren't they opening!? What did you do!?"

Cyrus wished he could genuinely enjoy the look on her face.

"Did you really expect…" he said, "…that I'd give you the chance to fight back?"

Cynthia seemed about to speak, but then a whirring sound of metal boomed across the valley. All gazes where pulled up toward the sky, where they noticed a strange, dark shape floating many feet above. It hovered still for a moment, and then began to fall at an alarming speed.

It crashed like a bullet on the ground in front of Cyrus, creating a shockwave of rubble and dust, forcing those close to the place of impact to cover their eyes and jump back in surprise. Two shining, red eyes broke through the cloud around it and a moment after a persistent, metallic sound could be heard like the clicking of a Scyther.

Inyssa was the first to see it as the dust cleared. It was as tall as a person, though that's where the similarities ended. The segmented, oval shape of its purple body reminded her of some bug Pokemon, though she'd never seen one like this, covered from tip to toe in some kind of metallic armor. Its head was shaped like a saucer, with what seemed to be its teeth forming a wicked line across its face. Its thin arms ended in sharp, grim looking claws and from its back grew some kind of cannon-like device, the top of which glowed with a red, pulsing light.

She felt fear run through her veins, freezing her on the spot. The thing in front of her couldn't be a Pokemon, as much as it looked like one. Every inch of its body, from its sharp claws to its armor, told her that the creature's only purpose was to kill and destroy.

There was absolutely no life behind its gleaming, hollow eyes. A quick look at Cynthia told her she'd come to the same conclusion, though the Champion seemed better at hiding how much that fact terrified her.

"For too long you've depended on your Pokemon for strength," Cyrus declared, voice emotionless. "Now that I've stripped you of that power, I will show you how feeble that so called spirit of yours is."

The creature's eyes flashed maliciously as it raised his claws, waiting for an order. Cyrus placed a hand on top of its head, his expression nothing like a smile.

"Today is the day you fall, Champion."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can probably see from the cliffhanger above, we're now on the clímax of Season 2. As such, I'll be changing my schedule from a chapter every two weeks to a chapter a week until I'm done with this season. That should be... three more chapters, after this one. I hope you'll enjoy them, and thanks so much for sticking with me!!


	42. Chapter 42

A wave of panic spread through the crowd like wildfire, and Barry felt all of it.

His vision became blurry and his knees buckled under its weight. It felt like a cloud of poison growing from the center of his chest outwards, infecting his organs and muscles. He barely heard Cynthia speak or the hundreds of gasps and screams as people began to run in all directions, trying to get away from that… thing.

Niss grabbed him by the shoulder, concern written all over her face. She asked something, but again he didn't hear it, too busy with the other voice sprouting from the depths of his mind.

" _What on earth…!?"_  Mesprit spoke, and a moment after the pain in his chest subsided somewhat.  _"I just felt that! What is happening, boy?"_

"W-we need help!" He coughed as he spoke, startling Niss. "Mesprit, we have to grab Cynthia and Niss and get out! Help me teleport…"

But he was silenced by another, even greater pressure on his chest, this time coming from Mesprit itself. Pure shock, with a little bit of fear mixed in.

" _What… what is he doing here!?"_  It screamed inside his mind.

Barry looked up at Cyrus, who stood a few feet from them, eyes set on Cynthia.

"H-he's the leader of Team Galactic," he muttered.

There was a short silence, in which he could feel the hesitation and… regret? Coming from Mesprit itself.

When it spoke, its voice sounded strained,  _"Listen to me, boy. You cannot let him know I'm here. Do not use my powers, no matter what!"_

"W-what? But…"

" _No buts! I can't risk to be seen by him and you can't let him know we've bonded!"_  There was an authority in its tone which had never been there before.  _"I'm sorry, I truly am, but you're on your own for this battle."_

He physically felt Mesprit's absence as it retreated into the depths of his mind, leaving him feeling empty, aching and more than a little angry. What the hell had that been about? How did Mesprit know Cyrus? And what was the point of being a legendary hero if he couldn't use his powers when it actually mattered!?

"Barry! Snap out of it!" Niss shook his arm strongly enough to hurt, shocking him out of his thoughts. "Come on, we have to help her!"

A sea of people stormed around them, running in every direction as Inyssa and Barry made their way toward the Champion. They saw her a few feet ahead, eyes wide in shock and fingers still grasping an Ultraball which wouldn't open. As Cyrus opened his mouth to speak, her shoulders tensed like steel.

"I have nothing more to say to you, Cynthia. You've gotten in my way one too many times." He raised a hand forward, palm showing, and gave the command. "Genesect; kill her."

The creature's lifeless eyes flashed yellow. Before anyone had time to react, it lowered its knees and lunged forward, leaving a vacuum of air behind it.

Time seemed to slow as it flew through the air like a bullet, arms drawn back and claws glimmering maliciously. Cynthia, eyes hidden by the shadow of her hair, slipped a hand into her pocket and took out a small, round stone with an indistinguishable pattern carved into it. She threw her hand forward as if she intended to shield the attack, but instead crushed the pebble between her thumb and index finger.

Genesect crashed face first into nothing, making the air reverberate with a metallic-like gong. As it fell backwards, an explosion of light hit Cynthia from below, casting strong shadows on her face.

Barry looked down, eyes narrowed. A glowing, circular glyph had materialized under her feet, filled with strange patterns of concentric circles. From its edges grew a thin, almost transparent dome of solid light.

"Wh–"

"You two!" Hollered Cynthia. "Come closer!"

They felt themselves tugged by an invisible rope, the strength in her voice leaving no room for disobeying. In the time it took the creature to get back to its feet she produced yet another stone between her fingers, baring a different carved pattern from the one before.

In one swift motion she lowered her knee to the ground, crushing the stone with her palm against the ground. An even bigger, more complex glyph grew around them, its light leaving them momentarily blind.

The air began to vibrate around them, making Barry shiver in a way that felt way too familiar. As soon as he felt that tug inside his chest, he knew what was about to happen.

He closed his eyes and held his breath as all three of them vanished into nothing.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa's insides had decided to do the conga on top of a rollercoaster, or at least it felt as such once she re-appeared on another part of town.

She swiveled back and forth, the world still spinning around her. Once her sense of balance came back from its short-lived vacation, her unfocused eyes caught the silhouettes of Barry and Cynthia next to her. The first seemed unaffected by the sudden teleportation, while the latter clutched a hand against her chest and breathed heavily, shoulders down.

It didn't take her long to realize where they were. She could still hear the sounds of panic and fleeing a few streets up, and looking down she noticed that strange, house shaped wooden altar at the bottom of town. Against the nearby face of the cliff sat a circle of carved, almost glass-like stone which she figured led to the Celestic Ruins.

"What… the hell was that?" Inyssa placed a hand on her forehead, vision still spinning.

Barry shook his head, "I… think we teleported out. But I wasn't the one who…" He caught himself, cheeks turning red. "I mean… I don't know how that could've happened."

"It was me."

Cynthia's voice was weak and throaty, as if she could hardly breathe. She held her head down, one hand still pressed against her chest and multiple tufts of hair casting shadows over her eyes. Her legs shook slightly.

"I got us out of there," she said. "It's… an old trick I learned from the mediums in Lavender Town. T-they can trap the essence of psychic moves like Barrier or Teleport into small runes, and when you crush them…"

Her knees buckled under her own weight. Inyssa tried to move but Barry was much quicker, putting the woman's arm around his shoulders before she could fall. Cynthia let out a faint growl and raised her head, eyes narrowed into slits. Her face was deathly pale and her forehead was pearly with sweat.

"Woah! Are you okay!?"

"I'll be just fine, thank you," she smiled weakly. "It's just… without a Pokemon to power up the moves, the runes take the necessary energy from the body of the one who activates them. Using one can be rather taxing. Using two..."

She didn't need to finish the sentence for the point to be made. Which was fortunate for her, since she began to cough uncontrollably at that moment.

In any other situation Inyssa would've been marveled by such a revelation at the hands of none other than the Champion herself, but at the moment her brain was rather busy ringing the  _panic_  alarm at full blast. She felt a familiar heat envelop her limbs and her breathing started to become shallower.

"Listen, we need to…" she paused, biting her lip. What exactly did they need to do? "…t-that guy's probably still looking for you, so you have to hide somewhere. Barry and I will contact the Association."

"Y-yeah! We can use the trackers mom gave us!" Barry forced himself to smile.

She nodded, grabbing the flap of her coat and turning it to the side. The small device was still attached; all she needed to do was push the button and…

"It's… not working," she whispered, eyes going wide. "W-why isn't it working!?"

She raised her Pokétch and tried to turn it on, to no avail. No matter what buttons she pushed, the device would not react at all. Her face turned paler.

"Mine's busted too," said Barry, raising his free hand to show her the useless Pokétch.

"It… it must be Cyrus' doing." Cynthia managed to regain a bit of her balance, hoisting herself free of Barry. "Some kind of EMP, which might explain why I can't open any of my Pokeballs." She looked down to the one she still held, the grey in her eyes flashing furiously. "They're usually built to be immune to that kind of technology, but his team must've found a way to work around it, somehow."

The possibility seemed unlikely, but the confidence in Cynthia's voice left no room for arguing. The mere idea that one person could have the power to shut down all the Pokeballs in one town… it was horrifying.

She looked up at the Champion, her voice coming out small and weak, "What do we do…?"

Cynthia didn't hesitate to answer.

"I'm g-going back there," she said. "I brought you here because I know Cyrus is after you. Go b-back to my grandmother's house and stay hidden. I'll buy time until the Association…"

"Are you insane!?" Barry interrupted, disbelief clear in his tone. "You can barely walk! We're not letting you go back there so that you can get yourself killed!"

"I am… the Champion." She struggled to speak, face pale as a ghost. "I h-have to protect my town, even if…"

She was caught with a sudden fit of coughing, and was unable to keep speaking.

Inyssa had never seen such a dissonant image; the frail state of Cynthia's body contrasted with the impassiveness of her expression and the fire in her eyes. Looking at her now, she couldn't believe she'd ever mistaken the woman for anything other than the strongest trainer in all of Sinnoh.

And yet here she was, willing to get herself killed just to defend her pride. Inyssa's lips formed a pale line on her face, discomfort growing inside her.

 _God, it's worse than looking into a mirror,_ she thought bitterly _. Is this how I sound? Is this what Barry…_

Whatever the case, she wouldn't let Cynthia take another step. She'd be damned if the Champion were to die before she could challenge her to a battle.

She placed a hand on the woman's shoulder, "Haven't you been paying attention? We can't use our Pokeballs." She grabbed one at random from her belt, raising it to eye level. "Without them you might as well be a cabbage seller for all the good you'll do out there. What we need to do is find reinforcements and…"

Her thumb accidentally hovered over the button, pressing it. The Pokeball opened in an explosion of light, making Inyssa jump back like a startled Skitty.

The glow faded, and Shadi's silhouette materialized before her. The Kricketune blinked a few times, looking up at her trainer expectantly, a smile appearing under her thick mustache.

All three trainers stood in silence for a moment, eyes wide in shock.

"H-how did you do that?" asked Cynthia.

Inyssa, similarly stunned, looked down at the Pokeball still resting on her hand. The first thing that caught her eye, rousing her mind awake, was the distinct silver color of the top half.

"Lucas…"

Her mind connected the dots rather quickly, considering what a mess it was at the moment.

"It's Lucas' Pokeball!" she exclaimed, unable to control the volume of her voice. "You remember what he told us back in Pastoria!?"

Realization hit Barry as she said that, "Y-yeah! The lockdown… whatever thingie, he said it didn't work with these models!"

"The premeditated lockdown system?" Cynthia narrowed her eyes. "If those silver Pokeballs don't have that function and they're working…"

Her voice was cut short as Inyssa hurried to grab the other one from her belt, while Barry did the same. They opened them at the same time, the triple flash of light revealing Bret, Kitsune and Pedri. They looked around similarly confused –annoyed in Kadabra's case– and turned to their trainers for some kind of explanation.

Inyssa could've wept in joy. Their partners, their friends. They were here, and their presence was the most reassuring thing Inyssa had felt all day.

_Next time I run into Lucas, that nerd's getting a big smooch from me._

"Only four…" she whispered. "Still…"

"We can do this!" Barry nodded. "We just have to buy enough time for the Association to come!"

Cynthia shook her head strongly, still struggling to stay on her feet, "We don't know what that thing's capable of. Knowing Cyrus, he must've made sure that it was at least as strong as any member of my own team," she said. "I can't let you fight it alone. As the Champion…"

"I don't care if you're the Champion! Right now you're just a civilian who's hurt and needs our help," she told Cynthia, scathingly. "So either go hide or stay back and shut up while we protect you."

"I… won't let you risk your lives like that," she argued. "At least let  _me_  fight! If one of you lends me their Pokemon then at least we'll have a better chance at beating that thing!"

There was a moment of silence, in which Inyssa and Barry exchanged looks. Then smiles broke through their serious expressions and laughter bubbled in their stomach until they couldn't contain it anymore.

"Is she serious?" asked Barry between chuckles.

"I don't know, I think those magical rocks messed with her head or something," Inyssa put a hand on her stomach, her lips shaking as she tried to contain her laughter. "Look, we really appreciate the thought, but we're fine on our own. Also, I'd rather die than have someone else command my partners."

Barry nodded, "We've been practicing together all this time, too. If you replaced one of us then the synergy between our Pokemon wouldn't work at all." Without a second thought he reached to grab Inyssa's hand, their fingers interlacing with ease. "Besides, I'd only be able to give it my all if she's here, fighting with me.

Cynthia seemed as if she was about to argue, but then she froze, eyes going wide. As if she'd seen something in them that she hadn't noticed before. Her expression softened, the shadow of a smile appearing on her lips, and she lowered her head with a sigh.

"I see. I'll leave it in your hands, then."

Inyssa smiled, "You can count on us."

As if on cue, the creature's screech reached them. It was sharp and painful like nails on chalkboard, reverberating through the air and ground as it traveled down to the base of town. Trainers and Pokemon turned to look up at the shadow now approaching, its glowing, lifeless eyes set on them. Cyrus walked behind it, hands behind his back.

"Guess there's no room for running now, even if we wanted it to," Inyssa gulped, fingers tightly gripping her friend's hand. "Barry… you ready?"

Their eyes met for a moment. He flashed a quick smile, though a warm and reassuring one nonetheless.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

 

* * *

 

 

As Jupiter strutted down the underground corridors of Stark prison –accompanied by her generous posse of seven armed Galactic grunts–, she was happy to admit that the mission was going quite well so far.

It didn't exactly make her feel better, nor helped to ease the dull headache her previous night of drinking had left her with, but at least it managed to stroke her ego somewhat. An always welcome development, as far as she was concerned.

"Move your asses, people!" She yelled, her words causing the grunts behind her to stiffen their shoulders. "I wanna get this over with before the fucking sun goes down, all right?"

She looked down at her Pokétch impatiently; Mars' cell had to be close; probably that one at the end of the hallway. According to her clock they still had seven minutes left before the disruptor stopped working and every guard in the entirety of the building came at them with an army of powerful Pokemon. Hopefully a bit more, considering the amount of grunts she'd left on the east wing of the prison as a distraction.

As she input the card to open the cell, excitement began to build up inside her. Finally, she'd get a chance to get back at Mars for every time she'd annoyed the shit out of her. Sure, her revenge might be a tad disproportionate, but she was a woman of principles as well as of spite. She didn't mind people being dicks to her as long as they were okay with dying by her hand someday. And eye for a spine, so to speak.

As she entered the room she was surprised to find that the backup generators still functioned, as evidenced by the single lantern at the other side of it, its dim light falling on Mars' body. The way it was framed, her shoulders down and head resting against the wall, almost made it look like…

"Oh fuck me, she's asleep," whispered Jupiter, narrowing her eyes. "Well, I guess this is gonna be easier. And boring. Boringer? Boringest?" She scratched her nose lazily. "Meh. I'm a scientist, not a grammar expert."

It took a few seconds for all seven of her underlings to enter the room, not to mention maneuver around with their weapons through the small space they had. While they got into position, Jupiter studied what she could of the room. The security cameras were still disabled, and the only thing of note she could see was a small pile of… plastic? Glass? Something jagged and transparent under Mars' bed. Had she intended to use it as a weapon? No, even she knew there was no way she could take on seven heavily armed people on her own.

_Oh well._

"Y'all finished wasting time?" she asked. "Good. Now shoot her."

There was a heavy silence, as Jupiter turned around with a raised eyebrow and lips tightly pursed.

"…Well?"

"But… commander…" One of the younger girls spoke out; Jupiter couldn't quite remember her name, just that her voice was annoying. "Aren't our orders… to bring her back?"

"Our orders are to bring back the bubblegum hell spawn she has inside of her. The boss couldn't care less about what happens to her, and neither do I," she clarified. "Now… someone is getting shot today, and if it ain't Mars then it sure as hell will be one of you if you keep me waiting,  _capice_?"

After a hushed cavalcade of ' _Yes, commander!'_  that made her roll her eyes, the two oldest ones of the group stepped forward and raised their pistols tentatively, pointing at the woman at the other side of the room.

"Aim at the chest, it's way easier than the head and just as effective," she advised, her lips forming a thin smile. "All right Mars, I don't know if you're a heavy sleeper or if you're pretending and you thought I'd walk up to you alone and with a butcher knife to… ah, I'm rambling again, aren't I?" She caught herself, grabbing her chin with one hand. "Whatever. Just shoot her."

There was a moment before the shot, in which the two grunts tightly gripped the trigger, where she thought Mars would move or try to dodge or… anything, really. That was not the case, however.

The deafening booms bounced around the room, and a moment after two small holes appeared on Mars' chest. She didn't react, didn't even open her eyes. Jupiter frowned; had she been dead already? No, that couldn't be. And… hold on, why wasn't blood coming out of the…

A shadow moved at the edge of her vision, falling from the ceiling. Before Jupiter could react, she felt someone grabbing her by the wrist and turning her around. An explosion of pain flared in her shoulder, and next thing she knew she was facing her subordinates, hand stuck behind her back. She parted her lips to speak, but felt sharpness gently brushing her neck.

A familiar voice spoke in her ear, "I can't believe you actually fell for that."

Jupiter craned her neck to the side as much as she could, the corner of her vision catching not only Mars' wicked grin but also the mass of bubbling pink which was her fake body, retreating into her. There was a single moment of silence, and then she spoke:

"Oh for f–"

Three of her grunts raised their weapons, followed by a sharp pain as the blade of Mars' transformed arm pressed harder against her neck.

"Don't shoot!" Jupiter hollered. "What the hell are you idiots doing!? Do you want her to slit my throat!?"

Startled by the sheer anger in her voice, the three youngsters slowly lowered their weapons and stared expectantly, their faces pale and fearful.

"Now that's a smart girl." She could feel Mars' smile on her voice. "Now, what do I owe the pleasure to? Were it not for all the grunts you brought with you, I would think this is a conjugal visit. Then again, I wouldn't have expected someone so pretty…"

Jupiter sighed, "Just… shut up. I'd rather stab my ears with rusty knives than have to listen to you for another second," she spat out, voice full of poison. "You got me with that clone trick. There, are you happy?"

"I'm always happy to see you," she said. "Well, when you're not trying to kill me that is. But even then I find it difficult be mad at you." Laughter bubbled under her voice. "Now, if you'd be so kind, could you tell your friends to lower their pistols and let me walk through that door?"

Jupiter considered it for a second before replying.

"Sure. As long as you let me go."

In any other occasion, the sheer disbelief in the faces of her underlings might've made her laugh. Unfortunately, having something sharp and pointy to her throat kind of killed her sense of humor.

"B-but… commander!" The same girl from before spoke, eyes wide in shock. "Our orders… if we let her go…"

"Listen… Skippy, was it?" Jupiter interrupted her, tone impatient. "There's no way for us to apprehend her without putting myself in an amount of risk I find unacceptable. I'd rather let her go and have to track her down later than to die in a dump like this and flush my two PHDs –which, let me remind you, are worth to the boss more than the lives of all of you–, down the toilet. You gotta learn to pick your battles." She breathed in. "Now… I'm telling you to drop the pistols, and if I don't see all seven on the ground in the next three seconds then I'll have my Golbat tear all of you to pieces and then feed your remains to my Skuntank. Got it?"

Predictably enough, all seven placed their weapons on the ground with urgency. The pressure on Jupiter's neck relaxed, allowing her to breathe slightly better.

"So selfish, so fierce…" Mars whispered, forming a wicked grin. "Then again, now that you're all unarmed I could easily kill all eight of you and still escape. So tell me, Jupiter: if I let you live, what will you do?"

Jupiter formed a tight-lipped smile, a vein pulsing on her neck, "Easy; I'd go back to the base and drink until I pass out. Then, once I wake up and my hangover subsides, I'd start searching for you. I'd pursue you to the ends of the Earth to kill you." Her voice was calm, unnervingly so. "You think you can run from me? I'm a scientist with a grudge, Mars. I'm unstoppable."

"God, I forgot how much I like you." Mars' voice was full of excitement. "Your plan sounds lovely; I'll certainly be looking forward to it. But until then…"

Her arm dropped, and Jupiter would've sighed in relief were it not for the sudden pain in her back as she was kicked forward. She stumbled and fell on top of two of her grunts, while the shadow that was Mars slipped in between them.

By the time she got to her feet –cursing and pushing away the grunt who'd caught her–, the redhead had already left the room and was probably running down the hallway, too fast for any of them to catch up.

Jupiter stared at the door for a moment, then let out a tired sigh and started rubbing her temples as if this were just  _One of those days_.

"…I'm getting my pay cut for this, aren't I?"

 

* * *

 

 

Saturn crossed his arms, "I'm here to talk, Ursa."

Her own name stung her like a needle, the very sound of it tensing her shoulders. She could feel her eyes slowly changing to that familiar golden hue as she took one step forward, Monferno imitating her a moment after.

"Funny. After the last time I saw you, I got the impression that you wanted to kill me."

She caught him off guard with that; it was clear in his face. Saturn parted his lips, eyes wide open, and it took him a few seconds to find his voice.

"If you give up Azelf and the papers you stole, we'll stop chasing you," he said. "I'll tell the boss that you died fighting me. I'll even give you enough money so that you can escape the region and go back to Hoenn." His eyes were pleading, and Metchi could see the melancholy and hurt behind them. "Ursa… please. I don't want to kill you. Despite everything you've done… I still consider you part of our family."

Metchi wanted to laugh, at his face and at his stupid proposition, but found that she couldn't bring herself to. Strangely enough, her eyes had started to sting a bit, and it had nothing to do with the familiar heat behind them.

" _Metchi, listen,"_  Azelf's voice broke through the silence in her mind.  _"All you need to do is to touch my body and I'll regain my powers. Use the Monarch's Eyes to get him to move."_

She looked down, brows drawn together. Azelf could've just told her to kill Saturn; it would've been the less risky option considering he seemed to be alone. Had it suggested the alternative because it feared it was running out of power, or…

 _You were never going to kill him_ , she told herself as her lips curled into a smile.  _Not him, not after…_

"I appreciate the offer," she said, looking up as she crossed her arms. "But in case you haven't heard yet, I got tired of running away."

Her eyes caught ablaze, two trails of golden wisps flowing around them. It was easy, a whole lot more than any other time she'd tried it.

Her gaze fell on the transparent ember behind Saturn's chest; his will. Taking in a deep breath, she parted her lips and spoke a single word, so powerful it felt as if the cavern itself were listening.

" _Move."_

Saturn flinched, face scrunching up in pain as if something were pulling at his very essence. He clutched his chest with one hand, knees shaking, and lowered his head until his eyes were completely hidden. The flame inside him flickered dangerously, as if assaulted by a storm. He wouldn't last much longer, Metchi realized. Any moment he'd…

"Don't… underestimate me…"

He sounded as if his entire body were being wrung out, and yet he managed to raise his head and take a step forward. Unable to hide her surprise, Metchi unconsciously let go of the pressure her eyes had on him. The flame was fighting back, somehow, and even with all her power she couldn't manage to smother it out.

She shook her head in disbelief, "Wh– why isn't it working?"

Azelf's shock was intertwined with hers. She heard it whisper in her mind.

" _Oh no."_

The light behind her eyes flickered out, turning back to their usual blue. As her power on Saturn faded, he let his shoulders fall and breathed heavily, a triumphant smile stretching across his face.

"Did you… really think that'd work?" He asked, forehead pearly with sweat. "The Monarch's Eyes aren't meant to force others to do whatever you want. Or do you think Nyss got all her followers by coercion alone?" From his belt he retrieved two Ultraballs and a Pokeball. "You're wasting your potential by using it like that."

She unconsciously took a step back, "H-how would you know?"

"Didn't Azelf tell you?" he asked. "About the last human it bonded with? Who do you think taught me how to resist your power?"

"The hell are you talking about?" She muttered, feeling as if something had caught up in her throat.

She felt Azelf going silent inside her mind, more than usual at least. It felt as if it were holding its breath, as if it didn't want to hear what Saturn was about to say.

" _Metchi, don't listen to him,"_  it pleaded, voice strained.  _"He's distracting you; this is your chance to attack him!"_

Her body obeyed before her mind could process what was happening. She lunged forward, body low as she ran, and slipped both hands into the hidden pockets of her jeans. Dire streaks of silver cut through the air as she unveiled two long knives, their weight pleasant and familiar in her hands. It'd been a long time since she'd had to use them, but one didn't forget these things.

Saturn didn't give her time to reach him. As soon as he saw her move the three Pokeballs were launched into the air, opening simultaneously.

Three consecutive explosions of light blinded her. The air vibrated at her left and she unconsciously jumped back as an enormous set of claws missed her torso by mere inches. At her side Monferno was hit by something solid and was sent flying a few feet back.

She looked up, heart beating wildly in her chest. Three figures came out of the light, surrounding Saturn protectively. The one hovering above him was Bronzong, the bell-like steel Pokemon who'd attacked her on the bridge. At his right stood what had tried to grab her; an enormous, scorpion-like beast with a segmented body and two wide fangs coming out of the sides of her mouth. At her left was a creature she'd only seen him use once; it was bipedal and tall, with a frog-like face and a bulbous red sac resting under his neck. Toxicroak; Saturn's best fighter.

The tips of her knives shook slightly along with her arms. They were too many. Even with Monferno...

"You're following a liar, Ursa," Saturn spoke from behind his Pokemon. "You're not the first person to suffer due to bonding with Azelf, and you won't be the last. Why do you think only two people have done it before you!?"

As she tried to concentrate past his taunts, a part of her remembered that night close to the beach. Azelf's statement, the clear regret in its words, the way even mentioning the subject of its previous companions had brought it such pain...

"Both Nyss and the boss trusted Azelf, and look at what happened to them! I'm doing you a favor by giving you a way out! Why can't you see that!?"

Metchi froze, knives still raised in front of her. Her eyebrows knit slowly, while she began to feel Azelf's dread and fear grow from the depths of her mind.

"The boss?" She asked, tone faint. "But..."

Saturn formed a smile that didn't extend to his eyes, "Who do you think inspired him to create Team Galactic? The disdain for humanity as it is now, the desire for change..." Their eyes met. "...Cyrus and Azelf have a lot in common. It's really no wonder they used to be such great partners." He furrowed his brow. "And if he couldn't control that bond, then what makes you think you can? You're not a hero, Ursa. You're just Azelf's errand girl."

She stood unable to speak for what felt like a minute, simply staring as the dots connected in her mind. It made a surprising amount of sense, considering what she knew of both. How had she never realized...?

 _"I can explain, Metchi. I swear it's not..."_ Azelf's voice reverberated in her mind.  _"I mean... it was, but after what happened..."_

Metchi leaned her head to the side a bit, a smile teasing through the edges of her lips. A small wave of laughter forced itself from her stomach upwards, and she found it difficult to contain it.

Azelf stopped talking, and she could feel its surprise as she laughed.

"That's it?" she asked in between chuckles. "That's the big secret? That's what you wasted all your theatrics on?"

To say Saturn was startled by her reaction would've been putting it lightly. He looked as though someone had dumped a bucket of water on him.

"What, did you expect me to get angry at Azelf and start yelling at it?" She shook her head in disbelief. "And make it easier for you to capture us? Yeah, as if."

"It… it lied to you," Saturn muttered. "If it weren't for Azelf, then Team Galactic…"

"Lying and omitting information ain't the same thing, dumbass," she interrupted. "Great; Azelf inspired that asshole to want to re-shape the universe, so what? Actually putting in the effort to screw over everyone else, that's all on him. And besides, Azelf knows it fucked up. Hell, I'd say regret is about ninety percent of its personality!"

A wave of appreciation flooded her, mixed in with a kind of irritation she knew too well. She felt the air around her turn lighter, and when she blinked the warmth came to her more naturally than ever before. It was her turn to take a step forward, making Saturn reel ever so slightly.

"Azelf might've done a lot of stupid stuff in the past, but I'm no one to judge or pry into it," she shrugged. "Both of us… nah, all three of us…" She gave Monferno a side-glance, and could've sworn she saw the shadow of a smile on his face. "…we're all a bunch of screw-ups. That's why we're sticking together."

" _Metchi…"_  Its voice echoed in her mind faintly, less than a whisper.

"Though… you did get  _one_  thing right." She raised a finger as she walked towards Saturn and his Pokemon, eyes burning with power. "I'm not really a hero, as much as I'd like to pretend. I don't help people, I hurt them. I don't light fires in the souls of men, I snuff them out." She smiled a terrible smile, fingers curling into fists. "And I don't fix problems, I just break them until they don't exist anymore. And if my actions happen to benefit others… then I can't think of anything better to do with my life."

"T-that's ridiculous!" Saturn's voice wavered as he yelled. "I have my three best Pokemon with me; if you fight us… you'll get yourself killed! You can't win this!"

Metchi, still sporting that eerie smile, shrugged as she made the knives spin on her hands. Her entire body was now covered in a waving, golden aura, as if she were wearing a mantle of flames.

"Maybe not, but I can at least give it one hell of a try."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa put her hands inside her pockets as to stop them from shaking, her expression forcibly blank.

"Listen. Bret and Kitsune will act as support while Shadi and Pedri go into the offensive." She spoke as calmly as she could. "They'll stand close as to parry or block that thing's attacks if they get past Kitsune's barriers."

"Simple and easy to remember, I like it," smiled Barry. "I'm guessing we're gonna use that combo we've been practicing?"

"Mhm."

Cyrus reached the street above, the abomination that was his pet walking alongside him. His expression was cold and empty, as usual. Unlike Inyssa, he didn't need to pretend to appear calm, the bastard.

His eyes set on them, and for a moment she thought any kind of surprise or shock would appear on his face. Instead he simply raised an eyebrow, lips going thin and pale.

"I see… I suppose the disruptor doesn't work on all kinds of Pokeballs," he whispered to himself, gaze falling on Cynthia. "First you try to run away and then you enlist mere children to protect you? I'd lament how far you've fallen, Champion, but that pedestal you built for yourself never placed you that high to begin with."

Cynthia tried to speak, but her knees buckled once more and Barry had to stop her fall. Her state seemed to be worsening; whatever it was that she did with those runes must've taken a heavy toll on her body.

Inyssa gulped, summoning all the wits she still had in her not to let the anger boiling in her stomach take over. Being furious and reckless wouldn't help the situation they were in. Luckily, she'd always had an easier time keeping a cool head when it came to Pokemon battles; the act itself was rather calming even in the middle of a life and death situation.

She placed a hand on Shadi's forehead, whose green eyes had the same determined gleam as hers. She brandished her scythes in preparation, her soft, white scarf blowing in the wind behind her.

"You talk a lot of game for someone whose only Pokemon is an oversized Durant." She said, trying to keep her voice steady. "You still have time to scamper off you know; it'd be embarrassing if the leader of Team Galactic lost to… what was it that you just called us? Mere children?"

She formed the best shit-eating grin she could. Cyrus however didn't seem impressed by her bravado –or anything, really– and simply sighed as he rubbed his eyelids.

"I don't have time for this. Genesect; take them out."

The mechanical Pokemon lunged towards them once more, its speed still as mind-boggling as it'd been before. However, this time they were prepared.

Without needing to be given the order, Kitsune punched the air with the hand holding his spoon, eyes glowing a pink-ish purple. A solid dome of light –similar to the one Cynthia had summoned but much bigger in diameter– materialized all around them.

Genesect didn't crash into it again, instead stopping so suddenly that a gust of wind trailed past behind it. It stood still for a moment, eyes flashing in and out like the lights of a computer, and raised both arms as it slammed them into the barrier. The impact shook the dome and the ground under it. Kitsune let out a growl of pain, knees shaking, but did not call off the barrier as the creature kept slashing and pounding at it.

"Bret: tie him up! Shadi: Swords Dance!" yelled Inyssa.

"Iron Defense!" followed Barry.

Placing both petal covered hands against the ground, Bret summoned dozens of vines as they exploded from the ground around Genesect, climbing up its body in an attempt to restrain it.

"But… that Kricketune, it's got a Choice Scarf," Cynthia said, breathing heavily. "If it uses Swords Dance then it won't be able to…"

"Don't worry about it," Inyssa cut her off, smiling. "That's the only move she'll need."

In the time it took Genesect to forcibly break itself free, Shadi and Pedri moved in perfect unison, just like they'd practiced a hundred times before. They faced each other, forming an X with their arms as they fell to one knee and closed their eyes in concentration. The air around Shadi became wild and erratic, dancing in circles, and her scythes began to glow with a sharp green. The air around Pedri turned cold and heavy, his entire body now covered in a sturdy silver glow.

The barrier began to crack around them. Inyssa clenched her teeth, a drop of sweat running down her forehead

"Now!"

Shadi began to grind one scythe against the other as she slowly walked towards Pedri, who had joined both fins in front of him like a shield. Every time her scythes touched, sparks would fly in all directions, while the air was filled with a subtle, almost imperceptible melody. The sound was sharp and deadly, but it had a strangely calming effect on Inyssa. This was her Pokemon's music, after all. This was who she was.

Throwing their hands forward in unison, both her and Barry cried out:

" _Royal Song!"_

Shadi slammed both scythes against Pedri's fins with all of her strength. His knees buckled slightly under the impact and he narrowed his eyes in pain, but was thankfully able to sustain the attack without much damage done to him. The clash reverberated through the air all around them like a gong. The glows surrounding both Pokemon went from one body to the other, interlacing in a shared aura of strength and might.

Inyssa couldn't help but sigh in relief. They'd only successfully executed the strategy once before and the result hadn't been as good. The idea for it had come to her after seeing an opponent use the move Belly Drum, which severely hurt the user in exchange for a momentary boost of power. Following that logic she'd been able to device a way for two Pokemon to share their buff-like moves, though one of them had to be struck by the other to make it work, and the strongest the attack the higher the possibility of the technique working. Luckily, Pedri wasn't one to go down after a single hit, no matter how powerful.

She smiled proudly. Of course, she'd been the one to come up with the name of the technique as well.

Not much time to celebrate was given to them as the barrier finally shattered, shards of psychic energy dissolving into wisps as Kitsune fell to one knee, panting heavily. Their light cast terrible shadows on Genesect, whose glare fell on them.

"Now's the time," she whispered to herself. "Don't hold back!"

Shadi and Pedri threw themselves at their enemy, claws and scythes glowing with their shared power. Planting its feet firmly Genesect crossed both arms over its head as the impact came. The floor cracked under its feet but it did not move an inch, holding on as the full weight of both Pokemon's attacks rested on top of its forearms.

"Shake them off," Ordered Cyrus. "Focus on the Kricketune."

Letting out a deafening screech it threw both its opponents back, the sheer and unnatural force on its thin arms staggering them momentarily. It threw himself at Shadi, not giving her a moment to recover, and slashed the air in an arc toward her neck.

Its claw hit the air and stopped. A small, square-shaped barrier had materialized between them, breaking the momentum of the attack.

Noticing her opponent's hesitation, Shadi regained her footing and slashed the air with her scythes in an X, hitting Genesect square on the chest and forcing it a few feet back. It readied itself to jump once more, but it felt vibrations in the air as the ground broke under it. Another dozen vines erupted upwards, climbing through its legs.

Now rooted in place, it was unable to escape as both Pokemon threw themselves at it. It raised both arms and endured each hit as it looked for opportunities to counter-attack. Shadi was quick and danced in between the flurry of slashes with ease, the few she wasn't able to evade being either blocked by her partner's steel fins or by the makeshift localized barriers created by Kitsune.

From outside the battle, Inyssa couldn't really tell just how many blows were being exchanged. Teeth clenched, she grabbed onto Shadi's Pokeball strongly and hoped that they'd be able to stall for long enough. She could tell their attacks did little more than scratch that thing's armor; there was no way they could take it out of commission without some serious luck on their part.

She forced herself to smile. That didn't mean they couldn't try.

"Barry, we have to hit him with one of Pedri's Emperor Claw," she said. "But he'll be too slow to connect, which means…"

"We'll just to use the Switcheroo strategy."

She frowned. "I still think Royal Magician's a better name, but yeah."

"Hey, we each got to name one." He grinned as threw his hand forward, "Pedri, get back and start charging up! Kitsune, get ready!"

"Shadi, hold him off!"

Empoleon repelled one last slash from its opponent –his fins starting to show cuts and bruises from the relentless beating he'd received–, and jumped a few feet back. Breathing in deeply he coated the claws on his right hand with that familiar white glow, while concentrating to the best of his abilities as a swirling coat of water materialized all around him. The power on his claws was almost too much to handle, the ground buckling and creaking under him, but he was able to keep it controlled for now.

Genesect, now having one less opponent to fight, took the time to break itself free from the ever-growing vines trapping it and jumped at Kricketune, claws ready. Both Pokemon's arms became blurs as they exchanged blows, the air exploding in a dozen cutting currents of wind around them. Genesect hadn't managed to get more than a couple hits in –in between Shadi's speed and the barriers protecting her–, but a part of it knew that it didn't need to. Its armor was almost impenetrable and its opponent couldn't keep attacking forever. Once her speed faltered…

"Kitsune, now!" Barry's scream broke through the air. "Ally Switch!"

A purple, glowing circle appeared under Shadi's feet, and a second after she vanished into thin air. In her place appeared Kadabra, eyebrows knit tightly in anger. With a simple movement of his spoon he repelled Genesect's slash, and pointing it straight at its face he blasted it with an explosion of psychic energy that sent it staggering a few feet back, screeching in pain.

"Again!"

Now it was Kitsune who vanished, switching places with the expectant Pedri. Genesect did not have time to react as the Empoleon's claw fell in an arc towards it.

The air shook from the impact, raising a cloud of dust. Genesect's body hit the ground violently, bouncing to the side as the light on its eyes flickered out momentarily. Once the cloud cleared, Inyssa noticed the three indentures in the thing's chest, a few inches deep. Sparks and a slight amount of blood came out of the wound.

Something sour settled on her stomach, preventing her from cheering Pedri as Barry proceeded to do. That… that had been much less damage than she'd expected.

"Keep it up!" She yelled as to drown that uneasiness. "Come on, don't let it r–!"

"That's enough."

Cyrus' voice stole her breath. Its cold traveled down towards them and enveloped even their Pokemon, who couldn't help but shiver under its weight. As Genesect pulled itself to its feet, the man looked at it and gave his order:

"We don't have time to waste here. Use Techno Blast on the Pokemon in the back," he said. "Burn Drive. Widespread."

Genesect's eyes flashed brightly, as its body began to change. The previously purple color of its armor shifted completely into a bright red. It lowered itself to the ground, getting on all fours, and pointed the cannon on its back at its enemies.

Inyssa felt it immediately, the hair on her arms standing up. The air around them grew hotter as a pulsing ball of red light materialized at the tip of the cannon, almost blinding them. She was frozen; her legs wouldn't move and her grasp on Shadi's Pokeball was weak–

"GET DOWN!"

Cynthia grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and pulled her back, enveloping both her and Barry with her arms. She pushed all three of them towards the ground, and then it happened.

The cannon fired, tearing the air in half. The beam of burning light made a sweeping motion from left to right, causing the ground to explode upwards as it connected. Inyssa felt it pass overhead, its heat stealing the breath from her lungs and stinging her back.

Then, she felt it. A wall of rocks and rubble washed over them, almost erupting from the ground itself. One fell on top of her right leg, while the other one hit her just over the eye. Her vision went white for a moment, an explosion of pain tearing through her. When she came back she did so with a sharp inhale, feeling the familiar warmth of blood running down her eye towards her cheek.

Darkness ate away at the edge of her vision, and for a moment everything stood still and silent. Then she was yanked back once more. She heard Cynthia saying something, but couldn't make it out. Pain and dizziness flared through her entire body, but she did not let herself fall again. She needed to make sure…

_Barry… where's Barry!?_

She pushed herself to her feet, the world around her still a blur, and miraculously her leg didn't falter under her weight. It hurt, badly, but at least it didn't seem to be broken. She parted her lips to breathe and felt as a few drops of blood fell into her mouth.

The block of the city they were in was a disaster; a thick cloud of smoke rose all around them. The broken ground where the attack had fallen was steaming and caught ablaze in some places. And their Pokemon…

She had to force herself to breathe. Pedri and Shadi were still standing, but only because the former had jumped in to shield her. Kitsune had fallen to his knees a few feet from them, wisps of smoke and flame rising from the fur on his chest and legs.

Bret lay a stone throw's away, flat on his back and completely unconscious. The front of his body was scorched and black. Almost all the petals on his hands had either been incinerated or badly burnt. He still breathed, though irregularly.

"N-Niss…"

She felt Barry's hand on her shoulder, though it exerted a lot more weight than usual. As she turned towards him she saw his scrunched up face, covered in dust and dirt, and looking lower…

She choked on a gasp. There were several cuts on his right arm, which hung limp at his side. Blood ran down it towards his fingers and then to the ground. His jacket and scarf, much like hers, were torn apart in various other places.

"Barry! H-here, take this..:" She spoke with a faint voice as she took off her scarf and tried to tie it around his wound, fingers shaking badly. Why couldn't she…?

"I'll do it."

Cynthia, looking about twice as in pain as them, grabbed the scarf from her hands and broke it in half, each piece for the two deep cuts on his arms. She acted without hesitation. Inyssa didn't know what to do for a few moments.

"You two focus on the battle," she said. "Your Pokemon are already holding that thing off, and your Kadabra is about to slow it down."

Inyssa could barely register her words. What did she mean their Pokemon…

The sound of metal against metal brought her back to reality. Pedri barely managed to stop a strike that would've sliced Shadi's neck. The impact pushed him to the ground, knees buckling. Letting out a growl of rage he pushed himself up and threw Genesect backwards.

The Empoleon felt nothing but pain, his entire body covered in cuts and burn marks, but he refused to go down. So did his partner, whose frenetic dance of slashes didn't slow down for a single second.

Kadabra raised his head to look at the battlefield, consciousness slowly fading. Covered in small flames, he pointed his spoon at their opponent one last time, and smiled as his vision went black.

Fire evaporated from Kitsune's body. A moment after, Genesect caught ablaze.

It brought Inyssa an immense satisfaction to see that thing screech and growl in what must've been a searing pain. She let out a small chuckle of disbelief, and turned to look at the now unconscious Kadabra.

_Synchronize… of course._

With their opponent ablaze, Pedri and Shadi slowly began to gain the advantage. Still, it'd been proved before that the tide of the battle could turn at any moment, should that thing choose to use that cannon again. They needed to think of some way to neutralize it

Her eyes fell on the distant shape of Bret, smoke still rising from his body. She clenched her teeth in anger as she searched for his Pokeball; he wouldn't heal while inside it but at least he wouldn't get worse either. If only she had a way to…

She froze, eyes going wide. Bret's Pokeball fell from her fingers as a memory teased itself from the folds of her mind. A pleasant, warm day. Lots of people, games, competition, and a beautiful shining stone which felt so pleasant in her hands.

She felt its radiance inside her backpack, as if it were calling to her. As fast as she'd ever done anything in her life she un-strapped it from her back and searched for the stone inside, to the confused looks of Barry and Cynthia.

Her fingers met with the smooth surface, and a golden glow broke through the folds of the backpack. She held the Shiny Stone in her hand, smiled, and pushed herself to her feet once more.

"C-cover me…" she whispered, voice barely audible. "I'll be right back."

And, without bothering to think it twice, she turned around and started running towards Bret. Each step she took sent an explosion of pain from her leg upwards, but she used all her will to ignore it. She was so close, if she could only…

"Genesect, stop her!"

The sheer cold behind Cyrus' scream almost threw her off balance, its volume so incongruent with its clear lack of emotion. As she turned her head to look at him, she noticed his gaze set not on her, but on the Shiny Stone she held.

"Techno Blast; Shock Drive!" He ordered. "Kill that Roselia!"

Time slowed almost to a halt. Inyssa saw as Pedri and Shadi jumped to stop their opponent, but were repelled by a slash that slammed them against the ground. She saw as Genesect jumped into the air, facing down, and pointed that cannon at Bret. She saw as that pulsing ball of light appeared at the tip of it, now cackling with bolts of electricity which flew in all directions.

She heard the air vibrate around her and, in that infinitesimal moment before the cannon fired, she made a decision.

Her body moved on its own, running faster than it'd ever done so. Her feet slid on the dirt as she reached Bret's side. She stood in front of him, facing away from that beast, and extended her arms to the side, turning herself into a human shield.

She heard the air break in half, and then the beam struck her. For a single moment every muscle in her body contracted in agony and she felt herself being torn apart from the inside, a hallowing shriek stuck in her throat.

Then, nothing. Her eyes stopped seeing and she fell.

In the back of her mind, she heard Barry and Cynthia scream.


	43. I May Fall - Part 2

Niss never made it to the ground.

Barry saw the delicate arc her body made as it fell, and he moved without thinking. The golden light behind his eyes caught ablaze as a furious gale formed all around him, making the air vibrate intensely. He blinked, and as soon as he opened his eyes again he found himself next to Niss. His right arm caught her just before her head met the floor, and the sudden weight made his knees buckle.

Someplace in the back of his mind he noticed the way her coat had been torn open on the back, wisps of smoke rising from the burnt skin underneath. As gently as he could he turned her around, a sob getting caught up between his heart and throat.

Her eyes were closed and her mouth hung slightly open. She looked peaceful, unnaturally so, as if she were enjoying a pleasant nap.

_N-no..._

He didn't care about the pain on his arm, nor the screams and sounds of battle around him. All that was in his mind was the fleeting, almost extinguished ember inside of Niss' chest. He could see it clearly, the light behind his eyes burning hotter than it'd ever done so before.

_Niss…_

There was a long, terrifying moment in which time began to flow normally again, and Niss did not breathe. It felt like an eternity, it felt like his heart had been frozen solid inside his chest.

Then the first breath came, and her eyelids parted ever so slightly. The ember grew, if only a bit, and he felt as consciousness came back to her. It was so faint that a mere gust of wind could've extinguished it.

"Niss…"

The sound of her own name seemed to bring her back from the depths of her own mind. She opened her eyes a little more –showing that bright green he'd been scared to never see again–, and parted her lips to speak.

"T-the…stone…"

Her voice was barely a whisper, but somehow he heard it perfectly despite the chaos resounding all around them. Slowly he looked down at her hand, which still firmly held the Shiny Stone she'd taken out of her backpack a minute before. It shone like a miniature sun.

Lowering Niss' back against his lap, he grabbed it from between her fingers and saw as a miniscule smile teased itself on her lips. Her eyes were faded and distant, as if she were struggling to stay conscious, and the wrinkles around them along with the way her jaw was set spoke of the immense pain she was in. Nonetheless, she made the effort to press her fingers against his.

"I'm f-fine, see?" she whispered through her teeth. "Go ahead. Don't… worry about me."

Somehow, he managed to return the smile. With shaking fingers he brought the stone in front of his chest, feeling its pleasant warmth as it spread through him.

He turned his head to the left, slightly, and his gaze fell on the battlefield. Now aware of his surroundings, he heard Shadi's inhuman screech as she threw herself at her opponent over and over again, not giving it a chance to recover or charge another attack. Despite being coated in a copious amount of her own blood, Barry had never seen her move so fast. She was nothing more than a blur, a terrible storm of fury whose only objective was to tear her enemy apart.

Still, Barry could see the fleeting embers driving her assault grow thinner with every second that passed. She couldn't keep that up much longer. She needed help.

Luckily, that's exactly what he held in his hand. He turned to look at Bret's blackened body and, as carefully as he could, lowered the stone onto his chest.

A ball of blinding light engulfed him completely, standing as tall as Barry himself and so powerful that it pushed the wind outwards, rising into the air like a fallen star. Niss, eyes now fully opened and mouth agape, stared as a dark and unidentifiable shape began to grow inside.

The light flickered for a moment. It shrank to half its size and then exploded in a flurry of white wisps, taking in the form of scattering petals. As they dissipated into the air, Bret's new form appeared from beneath them. He let his feet touch the ground, falling as elegantly as a leaf in the wind, and took in a deep breath before opening his eyes.

He'd grown almost as tall as his trainer, his arms now ending in full bouquets of red and blue roses. His white, flowing hair grew from where the closed bud on his head previously was, drifting slightly in the wind like cotton. A green, vine-like cape fell down his back, and most of his face laid covered by what looked like a green masquerade mask.

But most impressive of all –at least to Barry– was that Bret now exuded life from every one of his pores. He could feel it burning inside his chest and extending through the ground under him; a storm ready to be unleashed.

Bret and his trainer exchanged a short, meaningful look. Their lips curled into almost identical smiles.

"G-guess I can't call you short anymore," Niss said, her voice still hoarse and weak. "I l-leave this one to you, okay? Give him hell."

Bret didn't need to be told twice. He took a single glance at the battlefield and raised one of his bouquets absentmindedly, as if he were attempting to swat a fly.

The ground erupted, piles of dirt and cement flying in all directions as a dozen vines began to grow upwards. Unlike the ones he'd summoned before, they were as thick as trees and covered in sharp thorns. They shot twenty feet into the air, curled into themselves like tentacles and –as soon as he pointed his hand at Genesect–, flew towards it like heat-seeking missiles.

Even with Shadi moving out of the way, Genesect was unable to fully repel the assault. It slashed left and right with all its strength but for every vine it cut down two more would appear in its place. Soon its limbs and torso were completely enveloped by them and, unable to move a muscle, it was raised high into the air against its will.

Barry felt Niss move from under him. Not much, she simply turned a bit to the side, teeth clenched in pain. Her unfocused eyes searched for something, and finally fell on Shadi. Her state was truly deplorable, covered in deep cuts and blood, and her beautiful scarf had been completely torn apart. Still, as if she felt her trainer's eyes on her back, she turned around to look at her.

They had a short, wordless exchange, after which Shadi nodded with difficulty and brandished her scythes once more.

"B-bide," she whispered. "Just like... we practiced."

As Shadi ran towards the now airborne Genesect, all the pain and damage she'd endured during the battle seemed to rise out of the heat of her own blood, coating her in a dark-red aura so violent and powerful that the ground itself buckled under every step she took.

She jumped, gathering all the power into her arms, and slashed at Genesect with every ounce of strength left in her.

The vines couldn't bear the strain of the impact. Their stems were torn apart and Genesect was thrown like a cannonball towards the nearest wall of the road. There was a sound like the crack of metal, followed by a faint gasp as the light on its eyes momentarily turned off.

Shadi fell too, losing consciousness as soon as her attack connected. The beam of her Pokeball caught her before she could meet the ground, returning her to it as Niss grasped it with shaking fingers. A weak smile broke through the paleness of her lips.

Barry gave her a side-glance, feeling a knot form in his throat. Niss' eyes were still unfocused and it looked as if a stiff breeze could knock her out, or worse. He needed to get her to a hospital as soon as possible.

His gaze fell on the pile of rubble Genesect had been buried in, and a sigh of relief fought to escape through his lips. At least they'd knocked that thing out. Even if Cyrus had other Pokemon, none of them could be as powerful. Besides, the Association had to be about to arr–

The debris moved. A shake at first, enough to topple a small rock over to the side. Then came another, and soon the entire pile of rubble shook as the creature rose to its feet. Its chest plate had an X-shaped cut on it, from which flowed a slow stream of blood and sparks, and the device and cannon on its back had both been destroyed due to the impact.

Even then, the beast rose. Weakened and in pain, yes, but by no means out of the fight.

It took a tentative step forward, eyes flashing maliciously, and bared its claws once more.

 

* * *

 

 

The alarm sirens shook the ground under Sarah as she ran. The balcony which led towards the west tower stretched frustratingly long in front of her as she made her way towards Mars' cell.

Growls, screeches and the persistent sounds of gunshots boomed through the air and into the clear sky around her. Dozens of Pokemon flew around the building, pelting the outside with attack after attack while the guards and those in charge of security tried their best to neutralize them.

For some ungodly reason no one could open their Pokeballs, not even Lucian, which meant about ninety percent of their security had gone down. In the confusion, the Team Galactic members piloting those Pokemon had attacked the east wing of the prison, collapsing the walls and letting free a few dozen inmates, all of whom had joined the chaos in their desperation to escape.

 _This is a trap_ , she'd told Lucian as soon as they saw footage of the wall breaking down.  _They're trying to distract us while they save Mars!_

Unfortunately, there wasn't much personnel to spare, and as such the task of preventing such a break-out fell on Sarah. She kept her eyes focused on the ever-growing tower in the distance as she ran, her own heartbeat booming in her ears. If she could get there on time…

"Fearow; Hyper Beam!"

She saw the creature at the edge of her vision; its enormous wings slashed forward as it held itself afloat for a moment. From its beak grew a pulsing, blinding ball of light. Sarah barely had time to inhale before the attack was on top of her.

Her body moved automatically, as it had done so a hundred times before. She threw herself at the ground, landing on the meaty part of her shoulder as her momentum made her roll forward. The beam of energy flew past her, phasing into the air. She pushed herself up with one hand while grabbing the gun from her holster with the other.

She straightened her back, aimed at the creature, and inhaled once. Then the boom of the shot broke through the air, followed by the Pokemon's screech of pain as a hole appeared on its right wing, blood starting to pour out not long after. Fearow tried to keep itself on the air, pathetically flapping its wings as fast as it could, but the wind made it crash against the side of the building.

Both it and the Galactic grunt piloting it began to fall, and Sarah did not stick around to see them land.

_Hope you have good health insurance, jackass._

She practically flew through the steps down the spiral staircase as she reached the tower, knowing that she had no time to lose. As she breathed she could feel the familiar, stagnated scent in the air which –in her experience– signaled that something was wrong. Instinct, some would call it, though it'd been a long time since she'd had to rely on it.

She jumped over the last three steps, landing on the base of the lowest floor. The hallway turned into a blur as she ran through it, screams and echoes taunting her from the nearby cells. She ignored them; all that mattered was getting to Mars. She only needed to go right in the next corner and left in the other one and she'd be there.

So focused she was on getting there that she didn't notice the dimness of the lights hanging from the ceiling. They barely illuminated a round patch on the ground, plunging the rest of the hallway into darkness.

Perhaps such was the reason why she didn't see Mars coming.

As Sarah reached the next corner, a shadow jumped at her. She threw herself back, planting her feet on the ground to slow herself, but couldn't avoid the hand as it grabbed her by the scruff of the neck. Another one closed around her wrist and turned her around. Her cheek crashed violently against the nearest wall, followed by the rest of her body.

She couldn't move, her vision going momentarily blank from the impact. She felt a pair of lips brush close to her hair, followed by that familiar voice:

"Hey there, Sarah." Mars' voice sent chills down her spine. "Crazy running into you here, huh?"

Sarah acted instinctively, throwing her head back as fast as she could in an attempt to head butt her assailant. Unfortunately Mars saw it coming and veered to the side, all the while pulling harder on her arm, almost strongly enough to break it. She bit her lower lip as an explosion of pain shook her and spots appeared on her vision.

It didn't help that something sharp then pressed against her neck, forcing her to raise her chin.

"Nice one," said Mars. "People don't usually expect to be head-butted, so it's always a good trick to pull at the start of a fight. Too bad you're not as fast as you used to be."

The blade pressed harder, forcing Sarah to stand on her tiptoes as to not have her throat slit. Mars had probably predicted that her next move would be stomping on her feet to make her loosen her grip and had taken precaution against it. Maylene had not exaggerated when she'd spoken of Mars' experience in battle. It was a terrifying thing to behold.

"What's wrong? Not gonna ask me how I escaped my cell?" She whispered into her ear. "You could indulge me at least once, you know."

Sarah winced. Her gun had fallen to the ground as soon as she'd been pinned against the wall, but she had another one on the holster of her left hip. If she could stretch her arm enough to reach it...

Mars' knee drove hard into the back of hers. The sudden pain and loss of balance would've ended in her neck being sliced in half, were it not for how she holstered herself up with her other leg. Still, she could feel the warmth of blood running just above her collarbone.

"Ah-ah, not falling for that trick again. Certainly not after your son pulled it on me," she laughed. "Now I see where he gets it from."

Sarah set her jaw, eyes narrowed into slits, "What... do you want?"

"I can think of... eight things, off the top of my head. Nine if you consider how shitty the food of this place is," she said, tone contemplative. "Though if you mean right now... I'd like you to step aside and let me walk off this prison."

She tried to push her body back, even knowing how pointless it was. Sweat was beginning to form on her forehead.

"You're not getting away," she snarled through her teeth.

"I'm afraid I'll have to disagree. I will very much escape this prison in the next... let's say ten minutes? Five, if we're being optimistic?" She said. "That is, unless you want to stay here with me until Jupiter and her posse come."

There was a short, heavy pause, "W-what?"

"Jupiter... you remember her, don't you? Ran into her in Eterna?" Sarah's eyes went wide, the memory of that day coming to her. That purple-haired woman with the dispassionate eyes? "She came to my cell a few minutes ago to... relieve me of my duties, let's say, and I didn't take it very well. My point is, she and other seven Galactic grunts will be here any second, and they're all packing heat. I might be able to get away, but you?" She heard the smile on her voice. "You're good, Sarah, but not  _that_ good. I'd hate to see you full of bullet holes."

Sarah bit her lip, the searing pain on her shoulder making it difficult to think with a clear head. Could Mars be lying? No, she had no reason to. With a blade to her neck she could easily kill her and escape, which meant that she was actually trying to save both of them the trouble.

She ruminated for a few more seconds before speaking.

"Then? What do you propose?"

Mars' grin grew a bit bigger, the corners of her lips forming wrinkles on her cheeks.

"Easy; I'll let you go if you let me go. We both live to fight another day." Her tone was rather calm and matter of fact, considering the situation. "I like you, Sarah, the fact that you shot me notwithstanding. I'd rather you live for now."

The thought made her sick to her stomach, but Sarah knew she didn't have a choice. Maybe if her death were the end of it, she would've considered saying no. However, even if she took Mars down with her, that still left the rest of Team Galactic. That still left Barry and Inyssa, both of whom would be eager to avenge her even at the cost of their own lives.

Sarah's eyelids fell, heavy. She would not put them in any more danger, even if it meant swallowing her pride and taking orders from a terrorist.

"Fine. I'll let you go," she said. "Hurry up."

There was no more sass or mocking as Mars let go of her wrist and recalled the blade from her neck. She felt her hand entering her pocket and taking her remaining pistol, while walking back a few steps.

"Nice to see that at least one of you has their priorities in order," she said. "I'll be heading up now. Wait twenty seconds before following me."

She turned around to leave, and Sarah chose that moment to speak.

"Siffa?"

Mars' shoulders stiffened. She lay still as a statue for a few breaths, one foot on the first step of the stairs.

"Yeah?"

Sarah stared at her back, holding her aching wrist with one hand. Her eyes were sunken and tired.

"You don't have to be… this," she said, tone bitter. "This could be your second chance."

Mars lowered her head ever so slightly, one of her hands pushing against the nearest wall. Her shoulders shook, and she let out a laugh that sounded strained and weak.

"I've already had my fair share of second chances," she said. "And I've proven time and time again that I can't be trusted with them. Sorry, but I don't think it's gonna happen."

She began to walk up the staircase, and the faintest echo of her voice carried one last message towards Sarah.

"...still... thank you."

 

* * *

 

 

As Metchi ran face first toward what she figured was her certain death, she felt something change inside her.

_A fleeting ember, nary more than a few sparks joined together. Growing, breathing, turning into something far beyond physical. Something pure and cleansing and incredibly destructive. She could feel it tearing her apart from the inside, and–_

Drapion made an arc with her arm, her gleaming pincers aimed at her torso. Metchi's body moved on its own; she threw herself down and felt it going over her. She spun before falling, slashing at her arm with one of her knives. The edge connected, but it bounced off as if she were wearing some kind of armor. Slashing wouldn't work, she realized. She needed to stab her in between her segmented body parts, then–

_As she inhaled, the heat extended from her chest outwards, enveloping all of her. It was as if she'd never breathed before. She could see the wisps and embers rising from her skin and under her clothes, as if she were burning alive from the inside. It was the most wonderful feeling she'd ever experien–_

The scorpion Pokemon was unrelenting, and part of her knew that if she hadn't been ordered to hold back, Metchi would be dead already. There seemed to be no correct angle to approach her from. A frontal strike would get her smacked around by her long arms, and going at it from the sides seemed like a bad idea as well, considering the enormous tail slithering behind her, its pincers looking twice as sharp and deadly.

Perhaps if she could reach the head… no; she'd seen her rotate it 180 degrees, so that wasn't likely to work either. The only parts of her body that didn't look dangerous were her legs. If she could find a way to pass through the arms and head and make it to her belly–

_A long time ago, when she was still but a kid, her mother had told her the tale of the legendary Ho-oh. How its fire was different from any other creature in existence. It was said that wherever the creature breathed flames, it would also breathe life and resurrection. Second chances, as Metchi liked to think it as. Of course, its fire still ravaged and destroyed everything it touched, but it was said that from the ashes would always rise something ultimately better and beautiful. Even as a kid, she could never wrap her head around the concept. It seemed so ridicul–_

Drapion stabbed one of her arms into the ground to block her path, the cloud of dirt the impact raised serving as camouflage for her second strike. Metchi saw it coming, but her body wasn't fast enough to react. She hit her with the armored part of her arm, sending her flying backwards as a sharp pain erupted on her ribs. A couple of them had probably been broken. She rose to her feet again, knives shaking along with her hands, and ran toward the beast once more. This wasn't working, but there was nothing else she could do. If only she could distract her somehow…

_Spirit. Will. Purpose. Even as Azelf's chosen one, those words had never meant much to her. They were sacred, they had a spirituality to them that Metchi would never be worthy to attain. She was purely a physical being, after all. Blood and meat and bones and sweat and hormones; she'd never aspired to be anything more. But now, at the height of her and Azelf's shared power, she could finally feel it._

A scream echoed through the cave, not of pain but of raw anger and pride. Metchi turned her head to the side, catching glance of Bronzong's severely burnt body falling backwards, the ground shaking as it welcomed it. Next to it stood Monferno, eyes glowing red and completely covered in a mantle of flames.

As he turned toward his last remaining opponent, Metchi noticed the storm brewing inside him. He was struggling to control himself, to keep his conscious mind on the forefront instead of the rage and fear tearing him apart from the inside. He seemed to be on his last leg, too, only sheer willpower keeping him moving against a vastly superior enemy.

_For the first time in her life, Metchi felt herself free. So what if there was almost no chance of her succeeding or even surviving past today? That had never been her goal, even if she wanted to pretend it was. All she'd ever been good for was burning every bridge she encountered and now –as the fire spread all around her– it was her time to do it as well._

_She smiled. This seemed like a good place to burn._

"Hey, Mon'!" She called out, voice reverberating all through the cave. "Give me a hand here, will you?"

Her and Monferno's eyes met, and that alone seemed to ease part of the storm inside him. Taking in a moment to breathe, he closed his eyes and nodded to himself. There was nothing in the world he wanted more than to ignore her and keep fighting his opponent, who'd done nothing but humiliate him so far. He wanted revenge, he wanted to grab him by the neck and incinerate that smug grin of his.

But, unfortunately, there was a favor that needed to be paid back. And he was nothing if not determined to make it happen.

He feinted lunging forward, and instead stopped and rotated on the ball of his feet, whipping the air with his tail. An arc of flame flew through the air, momentarily blinding the Toxicroak as he ducked under it. When it flew over, his gaze fell on the spot where Monferno had previously been, but there was nothing there.

" _FREEAR!"_

An ear-splitting screech filled the cavern, making all heads turn towards its source. Monferno –having jumped to almost the ceiling of the cavern– hung in the middle of the air for a moment that felt like an eternity. Fiery wisps emerged from his fur as his body was completely engulfed in flames, making it seem as if he'd turned into a miniature sun.

He clenched his fists, inhaled as deeply as his lungs allowed, and focused every ounce of his power into a single point before releasing the attack.

A pillar of swirling flames exploded from his mouth, twice as big as his own body. It swallowed Drapion whole as it fell, creating a shockwave of heat all around the point of impact. The ground, walls and ceiling shook violently as her shrieks of agony bounced off them.

Metchi smiled, the heat of her partner's attack not affecting her in the slightest. The pillar evaporated along with what remained of his power, and from it emerged the scorched and smoking Drapion, eyes wide open and body momentarily paralyzed by pain. Just the chance she'd been looking for.

The Pokemon began to move as she approached, but by then it was too late. She swatted at the air with her claws but her movements were slow and Metchi slid under it, throwing herself to the ground. She landed on one shoulder and rolled once, lifting herself with one knee. As she raised her head she was met with the sight of Drapion's stomach, along with the opening between two of its armor segments. She drove both knives into it with all of her strength.

They slid in easily, the soft flesh making a wet and unpleasant sound as Metchi buried them to the hilt. Her opponent froze, a gasp stuck on her throat. Her entire body shook as she let out a scream of fury and agony, flailing her arms and tail in all directions.

Satisfaction flooding her, Metchi's fingers grasped the handles of the knives and pulled back. However, she wasn't quite able to get them out, as if something were keeping them trapped there. The smile died on her lips.

_S-she's trapping them with her muscles!? But…_

Momentarily stunned, she was not able to dodge as Drapion's tail appeared from behind her shoulder and slammed into her. The back of her head connected with the ground, turning her vision blank for a moment, and a sharp pain followed as the tail's pincers closed around her torso.

The world became a blur as her body was shaken like a ragdoll, before being violently thrown towards the other side of the room. She landed on her shoulder, which made an awful  _crack_  noise as it connected with the ground. A few seconds after –or possibly more, considering her stupor– she heard another body fall next to her, and felt the familiar heat of Monferno's flames close.

" _Metchi."_

She rolled to the side and tried to push herself to her feet, something warm and wet staining her shirt below her ribcage. She swiveled in place, Saturn and his Pokemon's silhouettes blurry in the distance. The familiar glow on her eyes and body hadn't disappeared yet, but she could feel the power weakening with every second that passed.

"I'm f-fine," she whispered, trying to form a smile. "I can keep going."

" _Metchi, listen to me!"_

She shook her head strongly, as if that would get the voice out of her head. As her vision became more stable, she could finally make out Saturn's expression at the other side of the cave. He looked… scared? No, something else. Concerned, maybe? His Pokemon, while beaten up, weren't in that bad a condition, which meant he was concerned… for her.

She narrowed her eyes in confusion; why the hell was he worried about her? She was absolutely fine; just because she'd hit her shoulder and was now bleeding a bit didn't mean she was out of the fight, far from it. She'd keep at it until her body was unable to move, and maybe beyond that. A simple hit from a Drapion wouldn't be enough to…

Something inside her chest tightened, and she suddenly found it difficult to breathe. A paralyzing numbness started growing from her wound outwards, and the pain all but disappeared. She felt cold. So, so cold…

Tentatively she raised the hand pressed against the wound, and looked at it. The dark red of her blood was tinted slightly purple.

The world around her began to blur. In the back of her mind she heard Saturn yell something to his Drapion. He sounded angry, and fearful.

" _Metchi!"_  Azelf's voice broke through the numbness of her mind, forcing her back to reality.  _"T-that Drapion's tail was covered in venom! I'm trying to slow it down but…"_

All eyes were on her, she could feel it. She looked up at Saturn, whose face had gone as pale as bone. He looked terrified, more than she'd ever seen him. And yet he said nothing, his lips pursed so tightly they formed a thin line over his face.

" _Metchi, please…"_  Azelf's voice was pleading.  _"If you keep fighting you'll only make the venom run faster through your veins. We need to retreat and…"_

"Just give it up."

With a rather nonchalant motion she wiped the blood in her hands against her shirt, taking one step forward. Every muscle in her body protested at the motion, but she pushed past the numbness and took another one, fingers curled into fists. Her expression was calm, but resolute.

"We all knew how this was gonna end," she said, forming a toothy grin.

" _B-but…"_

"Ursa, stop!" Saturn was unable to keep quiet any longer, his voice reverberating through the cave, which echoed the tinge of desperation and fear it carried. "Y-you said you were going to stop us, right!? What the hell do you think you'll accomplish by throwing yourself to die!? If you live to fight another day…"

She raised an eyebrow, "Now why would you want me to do that? Don't you wanna stop me?"

He opened his mouth to reply, but no words came out. He looked down, lips wavering, as tears began to well up in his eyes. The sight made her chuckle. She shook her head and spoke again:

"I already told you two dipshits; I'm not a hero, I just break shit." With difficulty she tapped her temple with one finger, still struggling to keep up her smile. "And if the last thing I break is myself then so be it."

She focused every ounce of willpower still left in her, and turned her eyes golden one last time. The numbness was driven back somewhat, and she could breathe slightly better. Still, she knew it wouldn't last.

"Azelf…" she whispered. "… I know it's selfish, but can I ask you a favor? Before I die, let's just go all out, one last time. All right?"

When it finally replied, its voice was so strained and wrung out that Azelf sounded more on the brink than Metchi herself.

" _V-very well."_

She nodded to no one as she lowered her knees, ready to pounce forward. She didn't have her knives anymore, but that didn't matter. She would just–

Her thoughts ceased. Something pushed against her from the depths of her mind, with such incredible force that she almost lost consciousness on the spot. The world swam around her, eyes flashing intermittently between blue and gold.

She recognized the feeling instantly. It was the same from every time Azelf had taken control of her body.

"W-wait, wait!" She stuttered, eyes going wide in terror. "Azelf, d–"

Another push, and her consciousness faded.

For a moment it seemed as if she'd fainted, but then her legs moved and she swiveled back and forth, torso slightly bent forward as a curtain of pink hair fell over her face. She stood still for a moment, took a deep breath and stood up straight.

Her expression was wildly different from before, taciturn and full of regret. Her golden eyes burned silently.

" _I'm sorry for tricking you."_  Azelf's voice came out of her mouth, echoing off the walls.  _"I hope you won't hate me for this, once you wake up."_

Its gaze fell on Saturn, whose shoulders stiffened as if something cold had ran down his back.

"Azelf?" he asked, barely a whisper.

" _Saturn, we can't waste time. Listen to me."_ Its tone was serious and urgent, with a tinge of fear mixed in.  _"I propose a deal; I will turn myself in if you let Metchi go."_

It took a few moments for its words to set in, mostly due to how unbelievable Saturn found them to be. He parted his lips to reply, but it took him two tries for him to find his voice.

"Y-you'd do that for her?" he asked, tone full of disbelief. "Even knowing what we're planning to do with you?"

" _I'm the one who roped her into all of this. She does not deserve to die for my foolishness."_  Metchi's lips curved up ever so slightly, her shoulders down.  _"Despite what she thinks of herself, she still embodies the aspect of Will better than anyone I've ever bonded with. I'm sure that, even without me, she'll find a way to stop Team Galactic. "_

"Even then…" Saturn bit his lower lip, "…I have my orders. The papers she stole…"

" _She entrusted them to her Pokemon, and ordered her to take them to Professor Rowan in case doesn't come back,"_  said Azelf.  _"If you let her go, that might not happen. You'll still have a chance to retrieve them."_

That was all the incentive Saturn needed. As he took one step forward, a tiny smile breaking through his pained expression, it became clear just how grateful he was for the deal Azelf had offered.

"Then… yes. I will accept," he nodded, shoulders still stiffened. "Y-you just need to get back into your body. I have a Master Ball ready, so…"

Azelf nodded, and turned his gaze down and to the right. Monferno was still on one knee, breathing heavily as he saw everything unfold. Worry was clear in his expression.

" _As soon as I let go of her, she'll fall unconscious,"_  Azelf told him.  _"Take her to where Lyserg is. Fly towards Pastoria, and look for someone who can treat the venom. You won't have much time."_

Monferno simply stared for a few seconds, regret and shame reflected on those dark eyes of him. He gave a tiny, sorrowful nod, and rose to his feet.

" _Very well, then. I suppose this is goodbye."_

The golden light in Metchi's eyes evaporated, and her body went limp. Monferno caught her head before it could meet the ground, putting one of her hands around his shoulders as he lifted her up. Normally he would've been strong enough to carry three people with ease, but the previous battle had left him weak and he could feel his muscles flaring in pain. Still, he bit down on his exhaustion and began running towards the exit, the light of his tail disappearing as he headed up the stairs.

Saturn returned his two remaining Pokemon to their balls, leaving only him and Azelf inside the cave. The latter could be barely seen, the shade of its spirit still looking back towards the exit where Metchi and Monferno had gone to. After a few seconds it lowered its head and began floating towards its body, expression unreadable.

It stopped just before reaching it, tilting its head to look at Saturn. The young man held a Master Ball on his hand, and stared back expectantly.

" _Saturn… you're a good man."_

Judging by the way his eyes went wide, that was not what he was expecting to hear at all.

"…  _I can see it in your eyes,"_  it said, words cutting through the air like a knife.  _"You know that what you're doing is wrong. No one who truly believed in Cyrus' plans would suffer so much making them come to fruition."_ There was a pause, and a sigh. _"You still have a chance to get out. Don't end up like me."_

And, without saying another word, Azelf closed its eyes and merged back with its body. Saturn only activated the Master Ball by reflex alone –still stunned by what he'd just heard–, and saw as its body was swallowed by the red light, trapping it inside.

The device shook three times in his hand, and stopped. The silence that followed was deafening, devouring the cave whole as Saturn stood in the middle of it, alone.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa couldn't believe that thing still stood. It couldn't be real, it had to be some sort of nightmare.

She could barely feel panic or fear or… anything at all besides the stinging pain on her back and her slowly fading consciousness. Her body hung almost limp, supported only by Barry whose hands shook on top of hers. For the first time since she could remember, their touch did not feel reassuring.

The creature rose to its feet, impassible as ever. From the cannon on its back sprouted a cloud of smoke covering a shower of sparks. The electric cackle it emitted made Inyssa's teeth hurt.

It took one step forward, almost tentatively, and looked at the empty battlefield in front of it. All but Bret had fallen, and as much power as he'd gained due to his evolution, there was no chance for him to take the beast down. Maybe he could buy them a bit more time, but strangely enough Inyssa felt something cold and heavy blocking her throat; preventing her from giving any orders.

 _It's going to kill us_ , she realized with horrible certainty, tears welling up in her eyes.  _It's going to kill Cynthia and then us…_

A few seconds passed, and she narrowed her eyes in confusion. Why wasn't it attacking them? Why wasn't Cyrus declaring an order? As much as it hurt, Inyssa slowly pushed herself to her feet and let her gaze fell on the man. Surprisingly, he looked as shocked as them, or more.

_Why…?_

"You two have done wonderfully."

Cynthia's voice broke through the silence, no longer strained. As Inyssa turned around she saw her walk toward them, head low and arms hanging at her sides, an Ultraball firmly grasped on her left hand. Her steps were slow but deliberate, and though she seemed on the brink of collapse, the strength emanating from her was almost unbearable. She walked between her and Barry, never turning to look at them. Her gaze was fully set on Cyrus.

"Most people would be ashamed to be in my position, having to be saved by a couple of kids," she said, a sad smile stretching across her lips. "But I'm simply proud, and grateful. I can't hope to pay you back, but allow me to try nonetheless."

She raised the Ultraball to chest level, holding it gently. Her finger hovered over the button, and just before she pressed it, realization came to Inyssa. As the device opened and an explosion of light blinded her, she remembered the state Shadi's attack had left that beast in. The machine hanging from its back had been torn apart, and if it was the reason they couldn't use their Pokeballs…

Her train of thought was interrupted as the light dissipated into wisps, and a nightmare emerged from it.

Terrified wasn't a good word to describe how Inyssa felt, but she couldn't think of a better one. Cyrus' beast paled immensely in comparison to the dark figure which now towered over it, expectant.

The Pokemon was one Inyssa had never seen before, nor heard of. Almost a mix of a dragon and some kind of hammer-head shark. She was as tall as Cynthia and only slightly more imposing. Her body –including the long tail– was mostly dark blue, with a red underbelly and a bunch of white spikes jutting out of her arms and legs. From her forearms grew what could've been either wings or scythes, it was hard to tell, though they looked incredibly sharp nonetheless. And her eyes…

God, her eyes were the worst of it. Two pools of darkness which held irises so golden and bright, they even rivaled those of Mesprit itself. Inyssa felt as if the beast could tear her apart with a look alone.

"Lorencia, I need you to take that poor creature out of its misery," Cynthia's voice, under the fury bubbling on its surface, was rather friendly and respectful. Almost as if the beast at her side were her best friend. "There is no need for you to hold back."

The Pokemon jumped forward before her trainer finished speaking. The sheer force and speed sent a shockwave backward that almost knocked both her and Barry to the ground.

The air itself seemed to move around Lorencia, letting her cut through it like a knife against velvet. Genesect, as fast as it was, could not react as the first hit came. With a movement as fluid as water she slashed its chest with the sharp part of her forearm, cutting through armor as if it were butter.

Most of its chest piece was torn apart, revealing an inside of pulsing flesh with cables and chips stuck all over it. Blood sprouted out of the wound at an alarming rate, while the beast shook and screeched in pain. Not that it had much time to do so, as Lorencia's maw closed around its left shoulder, fangs digging into metal. She lifted its body from the ground and spun it a few times before throwing it upwards, strongly enough for it to create a sonic boom behind it.

She jumped to follow it, the strength of her legs breaking the ground under her. Fast as a bullet, she reached Genesect just before it began falling, and brandished her scythes.

Inyssa's mouth hung open as she witnessed the massacre, shock distracting her from the searing pain on her back. Her eyes couldn't follow Lorencia's movements, barely the after-images she created as she slashed her opponent over and over again. She didn't understand, she  _couldn't_ understand. How was she attacking like that in the middle of the air? How could anything be that monstrously fast? It didn't seem possible for any living creature to move like that.

At the very least she slashed it a hundred times before they made it to the ground, a cloud of blood and sparks falling along with them. Just before they reached it, however, Lorencia grabbed Genesect by what was left of its wrist and slammed it down with enough force to create a crater underneath its body. She landed in front of it, as lightly and gracefully as a feather.

Inyssa had to suppress a heave. The thing laying in front of Cynthia's Pokemon was broken and torn apart, its limbs, torso and head bent unnaturally in all directions. From underneath what was left of its armor sprouted pieces of flesh and bone, the blood coming out of them forming a small pool underneath. Its chest didn't move, and its eyes had stopped flashing.

Lorencia stared at the corpse of her opponent, eyes cold and dispassionate. Inyssa could see in them that she hadn't enjoyed what she'd done, and still…

 _S-she didn't even use an attack_ , Inyssa thought, a strange mix of excitement and horror creeping through her.  _She killed it with brute force alone._

"That will be enough," Cynthia declared, expression impassible. "Well done, Lorencia."

Her Pokemon took a step back, nodding solemnly while her trainer approached. Cynthia's steps echoed through the air around them, heavier and much more imposing than before. She stopped barely a few feet from Cyrus, and looked up at him.

The pale man stared back, something like shock flashing behind his eyes. Still, he didn't look quite as terrified as Inyssa had expected.

"Do you see this?" Cynthia asked, lifting her chin. "Proof of how utterly wrong you are. Proof that your beliefs are so feeble that even the spirits of mere children can shatter them." For a moment she looked back at Inyssa and Barry, the shadow of a smile on her lips. "Even if I had died by your hand today, my will would've carried on to the next generation of trainers, who would do everything in their power to stop you. You will never be able to win, Cyrus, no matter how much you try." The stormy grey of her eyes flashed with pride. "If you push us towards the abyss, we'll make the wind itself lift us up."

Cyrus looked as if he wanted to yawn but couldn't be bothered to make the effort. If Cynthia's speech had any effect on him, it didn't show.

"I suppose I should've prepared for a variable such as this," he spoke to himself, gaze lost someplace else. "It seems the Unovan specimens aren't tailored for this level of combat yet. If anything, I suppose I should thank you for showing me this." He looked at Cyntia. "I'll make sure to make the proper adjustments for... next time."

Cynthia set her jaw, the corners of her eyes a spider-web of crinkles. She looked as if she were barely holding herself together.

"There won't be a next time." Her voice was composed in the same way a rope stretched to its breaking point was. "I... no, we are ending Team Galactic here and now. You and your venomous ideals will never see the light of day again."

"I very much disagree, unfortunately. I might not get rid of you today, but I can still accomplish my secondary objective." Moving as swifly as water, he jumped down towards the next street, landing at eye level with them. He never took his hands from behind his back. "I will be leaving now, and I'll be taking Inyssa with me. I hope you won't mind."

The look Cynthia gave him could've melted an iceberg, and yet once again she was interrupted before her fury could get the better of her.

"L-like hell..."

Inyssa, feeling that familiar fire in her belly spreading through her limbs, pushed herself away from Barry as she took a step forward. Her legs didn't appreciate suddenly having to support her body on their own, and as soon as she moved it felt as if someone had driven a nail through her back and into her lungs. The pain was so intense that she would've had an easier time holding up the moon with both hands than to take another step.

And yet, she didn't fall. She swiveled in place, eyes blurry but searing as she set her gaze on the pale man before her.

"I'm s-sick and tired of you and your fucking team. You t-think you can come here, attack us and just leave like that? You think you can make me do whatever you want!?"

She screamed with a hoarse, tired voice which sounded as if it were about to break. Her arms shook violently, and her eyes began to well up with tears of fear and anger. Cyrus, as with most things, seemed unaffected by her words, bored even.

"You do realize you are throwing a tantrum, don't you?" He raised one hand to the side, palm up. "If the Champion herself failed to intimidate me, what makes you think a half-dead girl with no usable Pokemon would succeed? I suppose the apple has fallen far from the tree in this specific instance." He sighed, and his next words cut through the air like a knife, headed straight towards Inyssa's chest. "At least Shadi knew when she was outmatched and was able to react accordingly. How disappointing to see that you're barely a shade of what she was..."

Inyssa's face twisted as if she'd been stabbed, mouth hanging slightly open in shock. Her eyes narrowed into slits, nails digging at her palms strongly enough to hurt. In the back of her mind she was aware that Cyrus was merely provoking her, but that knowledge didn't make it better.

"S-shut up! What the fuck do you know!?" She hollered, spit flying from her mouth. "Y-you think you can manipulate me with bullshit like that!? Huh!? ANSWER ME!"

Concern was written all over Barry and Cynthia's faces as they saw Inyssa's outburst. Her eyes were opened wide like plates and her face was flushed a deep red, turned into a terrible mask of rage. Something seemed to have broken inside her.

"I'm... I'm the one who's gonna become the Champion. Who the hell do you think you are to say that!?" Her yelling almost sounded like sobbing. "You think you can take me on!? Then come and fucking get me!"

There was a small pause in which no one spoke, and the faintest shadow of a smile flashed across Cyrus' lips.

"Very well, if you insist..."

It happened so fast that no one had time to react. Cyrus moved one hand from behind his back, a black and gold Pokeball glistening in between his fingers. The flash of light as it opened blinded them momentarily, giving him the chance he needed.

"Haze!"

Inyssa could barely make out the shape of Cyrus' Pokemon –about half his size, with long black wings and a prominent yellow beak–, before it extended his wingspan and a thick cloud of mist surrounded the entirety of the street they were in.

She accidentally breathed in some of it, and began to cough uncontrollably as everything around her became foggy and distant. She could barely see a couple feet in front of her. Somewhere around, she heard Barry and Cynthia's voices.

"Shit! Lorencia, use Laser Focus to find him!"

"Niss! Where are you!?"

Inyssa tried to reply but the coughing refused to stop. Half blind and in deep pain, she tried to make her way towards where she thought Barry's voice was coming from. Every step felt as if she were about to pass out, and her lungs began to burn. She extended one arm towards nothing, hoping to find...

Fingers closed around her wrist. At first she felt a wave of relief, thinking they were Barry's, but their grip became too strong for that to be the case. They squished hard enough to hurt, but before she could protest a pale face broke through the mist, cold eyes set on her.

It was as if someone had touched her with a livewire. Cyrus stepped closer, that strange Pokemon of his perched on his shoulder, and rose his arm as he spoke into his Pokétch.

"I have her," he whispered into it. "Pull us out."

She had no time to move. As it had happened before during the battle, a circle of purple light materialized from under them. The air began to vibrate, and something pulled at the depths of her chest.

Her scream got stuck in her throat as she felt her body dissipate into nothing.


	44. The Oldest Sibling

When Cyrus opened his eyes again, he found himself on a large, empty room of grey walls and ceiling. A familiar sight; it seemed teleportation had been successful.

The air had stopped vibrating, and the purple light that had covered their bodies had disappeared. His fingers still gripped tightly to Inyssa's wrist, who stood next to him with an aghast look; too shocked to react. He took in the sight around him rather casually, as if the situation he was in were nothing unusual.

The only things in the room beside the two of them were the three Galactic grunts standing close, their shoulders stiffened as if they were Deerling caught on the headlights of a car.

"What are you waiting for?" asked Cyrus, letting go of the girl's wrist. "Subdue her."

Their confusion lasted only a second, until they remembered the reason they'd been stationed there. Orion was the first to move; his imposing figure towered over the weakened girl as he threw himself at her, one hand closing around her left arm and the other grabbing her by the scruff of the neck. Next were Auriga and Pyxis; the first got hold of her remaining arm and pushed her shoulder down, while the second positioned herself behind her and attempted to force her to her knees.

Inyssa did not go down without a fight, however. Cyrus saw pain flare up in those obnoxious green eyes of her, anger and realization coming only a moment after.

"A-agh! Let... LET GO!" She twisted her body back with the last remains of her strength, teeth gnashed and face distorted into a mask of rage. "GET THE HELL OFF ME!"

She trashed around like a beast, with strength and determination that should've left her long ago. Then again, Cyrus was well aware of the kind of feats one was capable of when pushed to the brink. Cynthia had demonstrated it to him more times than he could count.

"Stop playing around," he spoke, his voice filling the basement like icy wind. "Orion, the girl weighs at least half what you do, it shouldn't be hard to immobilize her. Pyxis, would you kindly gag her so she stops screaming?"

It took a lot more effort than it should have, but Inyssa at last fell to her knees. The sudden impact made her gasp in pain, an opportunity which Pyxis used to slip a thick piece of fabric inside her mouth, holding it tightly behind her head.

She continued to struggle for almost a minute, but once Orion and Auriga pulled both her arms behind her and placed their feet against her back, it was over. The adrenaline inside her body slowly dissipated, leaving behind an empty, gasping husk. Cyrus could see the way she tried to raise her head or move her hands, but there was no more strength left in her.

She must've realized this, judging by the way her eyes began to well up with tears. Cyrus stared at the young, broken girl without even batting an eye. He looked at her as if she were a particularly dull piece of the wall.

Orion let out a sigh of relief, "Fucking… wow. The hell do they feed kids nowadays? She had me actually struggling there for a second."

"Says the muscle head," whispered Pyxis, nose scrunched up. "Seriously though, she was trashing about like a damn Tauros, and with that burn mark on her back on top of it. Where did you get this one from, boss?"

"If you'd bothered to read the daily reports you'd know that this is Inyssa Dawn," Cyrus replied impatiently. "She's been one of our secondary retrieval objectives for months now."

Pyxis rolled her eyes and pouted as if she were a kid scolded by her parents. Her rosy cheeks were tinted red as she struggled to keep Inyssa from spitting out the piece of fabric in her mouth.

"Wait... yeah, I know her!" Auriga spoke up, a terrible smile stretching across her hawk-like face. "She's the girl who tried to stop us in Eterna! Because of her..." Her eyes narrowed, lower lip trembling with anger. "What do you say boss, should I pull harder? I could break her arm easily; it's the least this little bitch deserves for what she did to us."

The girl's smile was forced, a deep pain hidden within her cheerful voice. Auriga... if Cyrus remembered correctly, her closest friend had been inside the Eterna building when it collapsed. It was no wonder she was reacting this way.

He silently chastised himself for forgetting such a detail and raised one hand to stop her.

"I forbid you from harming her any further," he commanded. "That is not why I brought her here. Simply hold her in place and wait, if you know what's good for you."

She hushed an apology and lowered her head, though the bitterness in her expression hadn't left. He'd take care of that later. Now it was time to put his plan into action.

Cyrus' hand went behind his back, grabbing a hidden Pokeball on his belt. He held it in front of him for a moment, as he would've done for any other, but did not open it. Instead his gaze went from Inyssa to her three grunts, all of whom stared at the device with disbelief and, most importantly, recognition.

"Holy shit," Pyxis whispered, eyes wide like plates. "Is that…?"

Indeed, the Pokeball Cyrus held was no ordinary one. Its top half was a radiant purple, with two red circles at the side and an imposing, white painted  _M_ above the button. Any trainer worth their salt would've recognized it from a mile away, not only its distinctive appearance but the loaded history behind it.

The Master Ball, rumored to be able to catch even legendary Pokemon without fail. Only a handful of them existed in the world, and the one resting on Cyrus' palm happened to be one of the three he possessed.

"Listen to me." His tone brought all eyes to him. "What is about to happen here must not leave this room. If I find out you've talked about it to anyone, you  _will_  regret it, do you understand?"

Nods were the only response, as the three grunts were too unnerved by the chill of his voice to properly reply. Under them, Inyssa whimpered and struggled pathetically, the last of her strength having left her already.

"Good."

Despite its fame and rarity, the Master Ball opened like any other of its type, an explosion of light pooling out of the crack between the two halves. It hung in the air for a moment, slowly expanding inwards as it formed the shape of the creature residing inside it. The silhouette was no taller than a human head, its arms and legs short and stubby. Two long, ribbon-like tails grew from its back, each ending in the shape of a leaf. Something akin to a helmet grew from the sides of its round head, combing back towards its nape.

The light left its body in pale wisps, revealing what was beneath. There was a moment of silence, and then the faces of all three grunts went pale. Under them Inyssa's eyes shot open, recognition flashing across them.

Pyxis' voice came out strained, "N-no way…"

It didn't move an inch, eyes closed and arms hanging lifelessly at its sides. Despite how unassuming the creature looked, everyone could feel the overwhelming presence it exerted all around them, as if the air had grown denser, filled with static.

Uxie, oldest of the Lake Trio, raised its head ever so slightly as it spoke.

" _What have you summoned me for, Cyrus?"_

It didn't open its mouth, and yet its voice echoed all throughout the room. It was slow and deliberate, so much so that one could barely pick up the hints of disdain and anger in it.

Cyrus –unfazed as usual– placed both hands behind his back and gave his order:

"I need you to erase this girl's memory," he said. "Not all of it. Specific parts."

There was a short pause. The atmosphere of the room grew denser, and Uxie did not move.

" _Cyrus… this is a child."_  Uxie's voice wavered, a small crack of disbelief filtering through its calmness.  _"You can't expect me to…"_

"I do, as a matter of fact," he interrupted. "Considering your talents I certainly hope you haven't forgotten… that which I have in my possession, what I could so easily destroy. You do not have the luxury of opposing me."

When Uxie spoke again, all signs of stoicism were absent from its voice. Its tone was still modulated and deliberate, but under it could be felt a terrible storm.

"… _Very well. I will comply to your demands for now. But…"_  Its head turned, and even though its eyes were closed Cyrus could still feel its gaze on him.  _"…once all of this ends, I will make sure you get your just retribution. And even the worst fate you could imagine won't compare to what I will do to you."_

Cyrus raised one hand to scratch his nose, looking as if he were about to yawn, "I'll look forward to it. Are you done?"

"… _Yes. Which memories should I erase from this girl's mind?"_

"Only two things. Firstly; please erase the name of Team Galactic and all memories associated with it," Cyrus said, his voice toneless. "It won't be permanent, but at least it'll momentarily stop her from coming after us. And secondly…"

He and Inyssa exchanged looks, and despite not being able to feel satisfaction Cyrus still noticed the lingering ghost of such an emotion inside him.

"...the name Shadi, and all memories associated with it."

The reaction was immediate. Inyssa's expression went dark. She moved again, shooting upwards with a strength which could only be born from a terrible panic, and desperately tried to free herself one last time.

Unfortunately for her, it wasn't enough. Orion pulled on her arm while he stepped on her back, forcing her down once more. Inyssa's chin met the ground, but this time she didn't stop, shaking her head wildly as her whimpers and screams were muffled by the piece of cloth in her mouth. All the anger and defiance she'd previously shown had vanished, replaced with a palpable terror.

"You know…" Cyrus spoke, turning all gazes toward him. "…it was your sister's idea that I find a way to keep you out of trouble. She even threatened me over it." Even though he felt no desire to do so, he formed a tight lipped smile. "She wants you to be safe, does she not? Considering what a dangerous woman she is, what choice do I have but to make her little sister forget everything about her? Whether she thanks me for this or not, it doesn't matter. This is what both of you deserve."

He took a step back, crossing his arms as he waited for Uxie to act. Inyssa never stopped struggling as the legendary Pokemon slowly floated towards her, until they were at eye level.

"Pyxis, hold her head still and force her eyes open; it won't work otherwise," Cyrus ordered. "All of you close yours, while you're at it."

The girl did as she was told, grabbing the sides of Inyssa's face with both hands and stretching her eyelids open. Everyone else closed their eyes, and waited. The room held its breath for what felt like a minute, until Uxie spoke.

" _I am so sorry, child. I can only hope that someday you'll forgive me."_

Time seemed to slow as Uxie's eyelids parted and a bright light filtered through them, briefly illuminating Inyssa's face. Their eyes met, gold clashing against green, and the last thing both of them heard was the cackle of lightning, before the world went black.

 

* * *

 

 

When Uxie awoke moments after, it felt itself weightless and free of the bounds of flesh. Its spirit drifted in place, a bright golden light which weakly projected an imitation of its body outwardly.

Despite having no physical eyes in such a form, Uxie proceeded to look around nonetheless, its soul reaching outwards like a sonar. The room it was in seemed to stretch endlessly in all directions but down, though it was hard to tell with the fog and white lights covering everything.

No, that wasn't right. Looking more carefully, they didn't seem to be lights.

They were mirrors.

Hundreds of them, floating all around as if suspended by invisible strings. What Uxie had previously mistaken as a distant glow was simply its own spirit reflected on them, distorted by them. They slowly spun in concentric circles, sometimes disappearing into the distance before re-materializing at the other side.

Strangely enough, a few of them seemed to be severely cracked or missing big chunks. As they slid through the air like the others, their unnatural sharpness cut through the fog, leaving pale scars which –for some reason– didn't seem to mend no matter how long a time passed. Uxie could see dozens of those silver streaks all around it, like invisible wounds forever burnt into the girl's mind.

"… _Interesting."_

All minds were different. Uxie knew this better than anyone, and still it couldn't help but find such a sight fascinating. Long ago –when it still had the habit of bonding with humans– it found pleasure in getting to learn the ins and outs of another person's thoughts and memories. It was like a game, like a puzzle. Fun, if that word could ever be attributed to a being as old as it.

And yet, despite the peculiar nature of the mind Uxie found itself in, there was no enthusiasm to be found. Learning who this girl was wouldn't help in erasing her memories, in fact it would only make the process more painful. The least it could do was allow the poor girl some privacy in her own mind before a substantial piece of it was taken from her.

" _I better get this over with."_

Finding the girl's memories was anything but difficult, even if Uxie hoped otherwise. Its spirit drifted like a ball of glowing smoke, dispersing the fog as floated toward them in a straight line. After what felt like only a minute, what it was looking for appeared in the distance; a small circle of polished white stone circling a puddle of water. Light bounced off it in a similar way as the mirrors above, though in this case it didn't reflect outwardly, but inwardly.

Uxie approached, slowly peeking over the edge of the stones and into the puddle. The water was dark and unstable. Its ebb and flow was slow, but persistent. A streak of white shone on the middle, as if a sliver of moonlight were falling on it

Uxie's sight penetrated through the darkness of those waters, and what it saw surprised it. It seemed the girl's mind was not the only thing damaged; her memories were similarly jumbled, like a puzzle whose pieces didn't stick together quite right. A few of them were torn apart, resting at the very bottom as they slowly dissipated into nothing.

How very interesting indeed. The girl's mind was like a thick, dusty book in which each turn of the page took one to a completely random one. If only the circumstances were different…

 _No, there's no time to think about that_ , Uxie thought as it lowered itself to the pond, one arm hovering just above the surface of the water.  _The more time I spend in this place, the worse I'll feel about this._

All that had to be done was erase all memories of Team Galactic and… a woman named Shadi, whom appeared to be the girl's sister. The first wouldn't pose much of a problem, but the second… there was simply no telling the amount of psychological damage it would cause to her. Depending on how close the two were, how dearly she held her in her heart…

_Stop. Just… just do it. Stalling is useless here._

A simple flick and it would all be over. With a deep sigh, Uxie lowered its hand into the pond, now a hair's width from the surface of the water.

" _I am truly sorry,"_  it said to no one.  _"In other circumstances, we could've been…"_

The air shook, and the world darkened. There was a moment of silence in which Uxie stood paralyzed, and then it happened.

A pale hand broke through the surface of the water. Its fingers closed around Uxie's arm with an iron grip, and the legendary Pokemon felt as if its entire being had frozen. It desperately tried to move back and free itself, but all that accomplished was aiding whatever was attached to that hand in getting out. First came the rest of the arm, and then another rose from the waves, hand landing on the edge of the pond. Slowly it began to rise…

" _Wh- how…!?"_  Uxie's voice echoed in the darkness around him, full of shock and fear.  _"L-let go of me! What are you…!?"_

Its voice died as soon as the head emerged, and a most powerful gaze broke through the darkness. Much like the almost marble-like paleness of her skin, the woman's eyes contrasted violently with the black curtain of wet hair falling over her face. They were the same color as those of the girl, only slightly more dull and cold, like a wilting leaf.

The woman's lips parted into a forced smile, and her grip tightened.

"I won't… let you." Her voice was weak and strained, barely above a whisper. "Not to my sister…"

Uxie could do little but stare, utterly baffled, as the woman pulled it closer and closer towards the pond. Her strength was tremendous, but what was happening couldn't be real, could it? There was no way a simple memory…

Its thoughts were interrupted once more, as the woman spoke:

"I'll be burrowing your power for a bit," she whispered, her eyes flashing for a moment. "I hope you won't mind."

 

* * *

 

 

Cyrus stood, firm as a statue, and waited. His gaze did not move from the unconscious girl, nor Uxie's empty body, as the seconds and then minutes passed by.

In the furthest part of his mind, he could sense that something was amiss. But… no, that couldn't be. He'd sworn never to listen to his meddlesome intuition again; that created no end of trouble. Everything would go according to his calculations. There was nothing more to it.

"Uh…" Orion's voice broke through the thick silence of the room. "Is this… supposed to take long? I'm getting kinda tired of holding her arms."

Cyrus sneered, "No, it should be over already. Still, this is nothing to worry ab–"

The air changed, and he felt a powerful chill running through his entire body. The room fell into silence. For a single moment, everything seemed to stop, and Cyrus could've sworn he heard the cackle of lightning in the back of his mind.

"AAGHH!"

The screams boomed like thunder. In a second, all three grunts holding Inyssa were repelled back, as if tugged by an invisible force. As they fell on their backs –their expressions full of pain–, Cyrus heard that strange sound once more. It was closer, and seemed to be coming out of…

Just as the thought formed on his mind; Inyssa moved.

Slowly she placed one hand against the concrete floor and pushed herself to her knees, face hidden by a curtain of black hair. Ignoring the immense pain she should've been in, she rose to her feet and simply stood there, shoulders slouched and chest moving delicately with the rhythm of her breathing.

The air around her seemed to solidify, wisps of golden light rising from her skin like steam. Gently she began to move the bangs of hair covering her face to the side, looking up at Cyrus. Her eyelids parted slowly, and the bright green he was expected was replaced by a yellow so intense it made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

The air cackled again, and her eyes flashed maliciously. Almost too shocked to react, Cyrus looked down towards where Uxie's body was. Still immobile. Still empty. As realization flooded him, something like panic finally forced him to move.

"S-seize her!" He swatted the air with his arm as he yelled, his voice bouncing off the walls. "Quick, before she–"

Inyssa moved her hand slightly, as if about to swat a fly. Cyrus' vision went white, and a moment after he heard a sound like a shotgun being fired. He found himself falling backwards, eyes wide in shock and an indescribable pain flaring through his chest.

He didn't know for how long he lost consciousness, but it couldn't have been more than a few seconds. The first thing he saw as he opened his eyes was the thin line of smoke coming out of his chest, the fabric of his uniform charred in a small circle below his sternum.

_W-what…?_

The sound of screams brought him back to reality. As the world came into focus he saw his three grunts with their backs against a wall. Orion was covering his face with one arm, while Pyxis grabbed onto his other one and buried her face on the fabric of his shirt, shoulders shaking as she let out choked out sobs of terror.

Next to them, Auriga sat slouched against a wall. Smoke rose from her arms, legs and chest. Her lifeless eyes stared up at something on the air.

He pushed himself to one knee, his entire body shaking from the effort, and let his gaze fall on Inyssa. She hung in the middle of the air as if suspended by strings, the outline of her body covered in a bright purple glow. Her red jacket had fallen to the ground –torn and covered in dust–, and the sleeves on her grey sweater had been burnt away entirely.

A multitude of scars ran through the surface of her bare arms; pale, red lines which broke off into smaller ones as they went on, ending on her fingertips. As if bolts of lightning had been carved onto her skin. As if her arms were covered in bloody vines.

She raised one arm slightly and a white, cackling energy began to rise out of her scars, spinning around them slowly as they built up power. It was a strange gesture, as if she weren't entirely conscious of what she was doing. Contrasting the storm on her eyes, her expression was completely blank.

Still, Cyrus did not wait to see what would happen. As fast as his shaking body allowed him he put his Pokétch close to his mouth and pressed one button on the side, speaking into it.

"S-seal the exits, now! Close all means of escape and make sure to…!"

Inyssa brought her arm down, and the air vibrated for a moment before the whole room shook. A sound like the boom of a cannon echoed all throughout the building. The lights on the ceiling flickered for a moment, then died.

A panicked voice came out of Cyrus' Pokétch:

"T-thunder fell on the top floor! The barrier's broken and there's fire everywhere!"

His eyes went wide. If the barrier was down then that meant…

Confirming his worst fears, the purple glow around Inyssa's body intensified. Her outline blurred, as if reality itself was out of focus, and the air began to vibrate intensely around her.

"N-no! Stop her, STOP HER!"

His orders went ignored as her body dissipated into thin air, leaving the room in complete darkness.

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing Inyssa thought as she regained consciousness was ' _Shit, this hurts'_. The second –a few seconds after as her brain was still on the process of booting up– was ' _Oh fuck me, this really hurts'_. The third was something along the lines of  _'Hold on, why does the inside of my mouth taste like dirt?'_.

Lifting herself up a few inches proved to be immensely difficult, as every muscle in her body screamed in agony and the inside of her head swam as if it were made of jello. The pain was much worse on her arms and back; stinging, burning, it made her eyes well up with tears as she struggled to rise to her feet.

With a weak cough she spat the dirt out of her mouth, the dryness of her throat making her wince painfully. She wiped off the remaining dust with the back of her hand, feeling it incredibly cold. Either she'd been lying on the ground for a long time or the skin of her face was feverishly hot; it was hard to tell.

Her eyes wouldn't focus, and the world around her continued being little more than blurs of green, brown and blue stretching endlessly in all directions. Almost instinctively she reached for her Pokeballs, but her hand found nothing. Her belt had probably fallen at some point, back in Celestic.

_Back in Celestic…_

The memories rushed through her eyes, hitting her like a hammer. The festival, that mechanical creature, Cynthia's terrifying Pokemon, Cyrus' cold expression and that familiar pair of golden eyes…

Then… the crack of thunder, a familiar voice, and nothing.

She stood frozen for god knows how long, eyes wide open and gaze lost in the distance. She'd… she'd escaped, somehow. Her memories hadn't been erased. And strangest of all, just before everything went black she could've sworn… she could've sworn she heard her voice.

She heard Shadi's voice.

But… no, there was something else. She could feel it just at the edge of her conscious mind. A pair of eyes set on her, as if she were being stared at from a distance. Slowly she turned her head left and right –her sight slowly coming into focus–, but found nothing more than cold dirt and endless rows of identical trees extending infinitely in all directions.

There was no one there. But then why…?

" _Hello."_

She gasped so hard she began coughing, and it took her a few seconds to regain her composure. As she blinked the tears of pain away, her sight slowly focused on something small and bright that had appeared out of nowhere in front of her. It was some sort of creature, with a yellow head and an oval body, two ribbon-like tails floating behind…

The word came out of her mouth half formed, her voice throaty; "U-Uxie?"

The legendary Pokemon didn't move, but on the back of her mind she could've sworn she felt an unfamiliar sense of recognition. She could imagine it nodding, even though its pale form was immobile.

" _I didn't want to call attention to myself before you got your bearings."_  Its voice was calm and thin, the sound of it sending a relaxing feeling all throughout Inyssa's body.  _"However, I also wanted to avoid waiting too long, lest your body collapses and you die."_

There was a long, odd silence as Inyssa simply stared at Uxie, mouth slightly agape.

"… _Of course. I understand this is a very strange situation and you're wounded and scared, but if you let me explain and try not to freak out…"_

"You… bonded with me?"

Despite how expressionless Uxie's face was –even more so than Mesprit, since its eyes were always closed–, Inyssa could feel a foreign tinge of surprise coming from it.

" _Oh… then, you know. That makes it a lot easier,"_  it said.  _"Yes, that seems to be the case."_

"How?" Inyssa asked, her eyebrows forming a bridge over her nose. "I was… weren't you supposed to erase my memory or something? How did you bond with me? How… did we get out?" She placed a hand against the side of her head, wincing as the world blurred around her. "Agh… I don't… remember anything."

" _Neither do I, to be honest."_

Inyssa squinted at Uxie, her expression perfectly spelling out ' _Are you for real right now?'_.

" _You_  don't remember anything," she repeated, disbelief clear in her voice. "Uxie. The one who's all about remembering stuff. The living embodiment of Memory, yadda yadda."

" _I am ashamed, and I assure you that it is a wholly unfamiliar feeling to me, but that is the unfortunate truth. I don't seem to remember anything after I entered your mind."_

It was painful, but she managed to form a lopsided smile. "Man, if I hadn't seen Mesprit do some cool stuff I'd think you're all a bunch of posers. Legendary Pokemon my a–"

" _H-hold on! What did you say!?"_

The sudden force and volume on its voice made her jump, which in turn sent a shockwave of pain throughout her muscles. Biting on her lower lip, she held her breath until it subsided.

"I said you're all a bunch of posers," she repeated.

" _N-no, the other thing!_   _You know Mesprit!?"_

"Oh… yeah. Long story," she said. "Mesprit… bonded with my friend to escape Team Galactic. We've been hanging out for a few days." There was a short pause, and she added: "It misses you, I think."

Another silence stretched through the patch of forest they were in, though thankfully not as long nor as awkward as the one before.

" _Oh my stars…"_  Uxie's voice was little more than a whisper.  _"Mesprit is safe… I can't believe it."_

Despite her curiosity regarding the Lake Trio's –rather messy and convoluted– family history, Inyssa decided to leave the matter for a later time. Maybe when she weren't about to drop dead from pain, exhaustion, trauma and possibly a fever.

She cleared her throat before speaking, "So… you think you could take me to them? You can help me teleport to where they are, right?"

" _I… suppose that's a possibility. If I dig through your memories I should be able to find a clear image of Mesprit and this boy you were speaking of, and then teleport both of us to the former,"_  Uxie said.  _"However, in your current state that might be too dangerous. I mean no offense by this, but your body is severely wounded and the exhaustion caused by such a long-scale teleportation might finish you off for good."_

She furrowed her brow, "I'm tough. I can handle it."

Wanting to prove her point, she crossed her arms and smiled as if nothing were wrong. Of course on the inside she was struggling not to tear up from the pain as the muscles on her back stung immensely, but Uxie didn't need to know that.

" _Child; I feel everything you feel. The only reason you're still conscious is because I'm tricking your body into pumping you full of adrenaline."_

"Then it shouldn't be a problem," she said. "Come on, the longer we wait the worse the trip will be. Besides, there's no way something as dumb as that is gonna kill me."

Despite Uxie having its eyes closed, Inyssa could feel its judging glare on her. It felt uncomfortably familiar, like the look a parent might give an unruly child. Luckily, after a long silence the feeling evaporated and she heard a sigh on the back of her mind.

" _Very well. I suppose there is no other choice."_

She nodded with difficulty, standing up straight.

"Great. Lead us off, then."

She waited for ten seconds, but nothing happened. When Uxie spoke, its tone was almost shy.

" _I was hoping… we could maybe introduce ourselves first?"_  it asked.  _"Considering our current situation, and since we might not get the chance to later."_

She blinked a few times, "Oh… right. I'm Inyssa Dawn; I'm seventeen and the person who's gonna be the Champion one day. There, nice to meet you."

" _I see…"_  There was a certain edge to Uxie's voice, as if the situation were wholly unfamiliar to it.  _"I was thinking of something slightly more… significant, perhaps. Back in my day the crowning of a hero involved feasts, balls and month-long celebrations. Besides, I haven't even introduced myself, so…"_

"You're Uxie, oldest of the Lake Trio," she cut him off. "Living embodiment of wisdom, knowledge and memory. Your home is the cave in the middle of Lake Acuity on the outskirts of Snowpoint City. Stories say that if you ever open your eyes, everyone you look at will lose their memories, though other than that you're a pretty stand up… guy? Girl? Neither, I guess."

She took a deep breath, her heart beating fast after her rushed explanation.

"There, is that enough?" she asked, looking up at Uxie. "Can we get a move on?"

Her first guess as to what would happen was that Uxie might yell at her, or be so offended that it'd leave her there to die. However, after a short silence she felt laughter bubbling inside her, coming from none other than the legendary Pokemon itself.

" _You… are a most unusual child, aren't you?"_  Uxie said, and she could feel the smile on its voice.  _"It indeed is a pleasure to meet you, Inyssa Dawn. I look forward to our time working together."_

Before she could reply, that familiar feeling of something pulling at the depths of her chest came back. The air vibrated intensely around her, the outline of her body covered in a purple glow, and she felt her body dissipating into nothing.

They both disappeared, leaving the forest in silence once more.

 

* * *

 

 

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself on the dark hallways of some poorly illuminated building. The walls were a mix of white and pastel green, and the air was pestered with the smell of antiseptics.

 _A hospital?_ She thought _._

She tried to move, but her legs gave out. She threw herself against a nearby wall to avoid falling, her vision blurring and an unbearable pain flooding her entire body. Her skin was hot, unbelievably so, and she could barely keep herself conscious. Still, she couldn't collapse yet. She had to find Barry, had to…

"Don't give me that crap!"

The yell startled her. It was a familiar voice, slightly muffled by the distance and the walls between Inyssa and its owner. Almost unconsciously she began walking towards it, each step feeling as if she were about to pass out.

"Sarah, please calm down. I promise you; they decided to fight that thing on their own…"

Another familiar voice. More subdued this time, full of regret. She could see the room it was coming from, only a few feet from her. The door was closed, but if she could get to it…

"Shut up! Don't think you'll get out of this just because you're the Champion! If you don't find her… I swear to god I will…!"

She was interrupted, as at that moment the door opened. Inyssa slipped through it with difficulty, breathing heavily and barely able to see. Still, as soon as she entered she could feel two pair of eyes on her.

Sarah was on one extreme of the room, one hand closed strongly around Cynthia's collar. The latter was pinned against the wall, a bead of sweat falling down her forehead and her lips tightly pursed. At the other side of the room she saw Barry, laying on a hospital bed and covered in sheets. His eyes were closed; the slow breathing and the IV connected to his arm signifying that he was either asleep or sedated.

"O-oh my god."

She turned to look at Sarah, and the expression on her face was so priceless she could barely keep herself from laughing. Cynthia wasn't much better; her skin had gone even paler than usual and her eyes were so wide open she looked like a Hoot-Hoot.

Inyssa tried her best to form a soothing smile, and raised one arm to greet them.

"H-hey th…ere…"

Her body went limp, and she felt herself falling. The last thing she felt was a sharp pain as she landed on her knees, and then nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaand that is the end of the second arc. Hopefully I did justice to it, I've been working on this particular part of the story for a long time. I'll go into a small hiatus (probably less than a month) before posting the first chapter of Arc 3. Until then... thank you all so much for reading <3


	45. Intermission: A Day in the Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back, everyone. This isn't quite Act 3, but it's a chapter that I felt needed to happen before we move on to the rest of the story. Don't worry, we'll be back to Niss and Barry next chapter.

**》** Siffa sighed as she hung her head, fingers curling against the wet dirt and thunder roaring in her ears.

"You can kill me," she whispered, voice toneless. "If it's you… I don't mind."

A woman stood across her. The sliver of moon behind her cast a weak light on her back, shrouding her face in shadows. Only the pale, faded green of her eyes could be seen from where Siffa knelt.

"Now, why would I do that?"

Slowly she lowered herself to Siffa's level, though her knees never touched the ground. Her ghastly left hand traveled the distance between them and stopped just under the girl's chin, raising it so their eyes could meet. The touch sent a strong shiver throughout her entire body.

"Is this as far as you go?" the woman asked, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "Do you really want to die?"

Siffa's eyes reflected no light. Her lips where the only part of her that moved as she replied, "I don't want anything."

"That can't be true. We all want something."

Her hold on Siffa's chin became firmer, almost painful. The edge of her eyes crinkled ever so slightly.

"They couldn't have broken you that badly, could they? You're not weak. You're not a slave anymore. So let me ask you again:  _what_  do you want?"

Siffa tried, she really did. Even with cold and despair clinging to every cell of her body, she racked her brain for an answer. There had to be a part of her which still desired something, right? If Shadi believed so, then it had to be the truth.

But as the seconds went by and eventually turned into a minute, nothing came to her. Her hands, knees and lower lip began to shake in desperation, tears welling up in her eyes. Why… why did it hurt? It'd never hurt before; the people who raised her had made sure of that. So why now…?

"I… I don't know," she admitted, a sob getting caught in her throat. "I just… do what they tell me, but now they're gone. I don't know what to do, I don't know what I want…"

Shadi shook her head, "Really? Someone as talented as you? There's a million courses of action you could take, and there's a billion possible futures that could be born from those actions." She raised her palm as she spoke, the tips of her fingers curling into a fist. "And you're telling me that you don't know what to do?"

"I don't have your cleverness," she said, a sad smile forming on her lips. "I'm just a tool. Without someone to use me, I have no reason to be."

Her words hung heavy, forming the shape of a noose around her neck. She closed her eyes and waited. Waited for Shadi to tell her what she expected; that she was not a tool, that she deserved to live and carve her own future. Empty words and hollow promises. Nothing she hadn't heard a million times before, nothing she couldn't deal with.

However, like many times before, Shadi surprised her.

"A tool, you say?" She looked down at her hand, silent for a few moments. "…fine, I'll believe you."

Siffa blinked, looking up at her willingly for the first time.

"W-what?"

"I'll believe that you're a tool. No one would know better than you, I suppose," she shrugged weakly. "And considering your masters are dead… I guess that means you take orders from me now."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her body reacted on its own, forcing her to stand up and take a step back, horror reflected on her face. The idea of Shadi treating her like those people had… the mere thought of it made her stomach turn.

Shadi's lips curved up, "If you really were a tool, you wouldn't be reacting this way."

"I–I am a tool!" She stuttered, trying to convince herself as much as Shadi. "Th-that's all I'll ever be."

"Then let me use you." Shadi took a step forward, her voice eager. "Let me teach you all I know. You'll become part of something greater. You'll never have to dirty your own hands again."

Her hands fell on top of Siffa's shoulders, grabbing onto them like iron cuffs.

"If your life doesn't have meaning, let me give it one. If you don't know what to do with your talents, let me decide for you." Her voice changed, gaining both volume and strength as she spoke. "I'll force you to live your life to the fullest, and I'll make sure not a second of it is wasted."

A terrible smile stretched across Shadi's lips. Her teeth caught a piece of moonlight and reflected it back to her.

"If you want a reason to live, then follow me," she said, a sinister weight behind her voice. "For there is no purpose greater than mine." **《**

 

* * *

 

 

Thunder roared, rattling Mars' consciousness awake. She opened her eyes slowly, a soft, endless blue meeting her as she came back to her senses. No clouds, no storm.

 _Just a dream_ , a part of her said. It was a meekly voice, as familiar and unpleasant as the smell of blood. Keeping it locked in the depths of her mind would've been ideal, but it always seemed to resurface during her first moments of consciousness, after waking up. A bad habit, one of many she'd developed.

"Just a dream…"

She repeated the words carefully. Her lips curved up into a weak smile, and a small chuckle escaped from them.

_Yeah… if only._

 

* * *

 

 

Saturn tried his best not to falter under the weight of Cyrus' gaze. He sat still, unnaturally so, as if his body were made of something fragile and the barest movement could shatter it like shrapnel.

The man sat at the opposite end of the table, both elbows resting on top and fingers tightly interlaced. Next to him, Jupiter leaned back on her chair and stared at her nails as if nothing in the world could possibly worry her. Lucky bastard.

"As you know…" Cyrus spoke up, his voice turning the room colder, "…I've called you here to discuss the results of our respective missions. It's important to know where we stand, and what our objectives are as of now."

Saturn shifted uncomfortably in his seat, fingers anxiously playing with each other. He'd expected a punishment right away, but the boss didn't sound angry. Then again, he never did. Maybe he was saving it for the end of the discussion; the thought of having to wait for it was even more unpleasant.

A loud yawn was hear, followed by Jupiter weighing in, "I thought you called all commanders; why the hell isn't Charon here?"

"He was only tangentially related to the events we're here to discuss," Cyrus explained. "Additionally, now that both the disruptor and the Unovan project have been tested, he's been tasked with improving them for next part of our plan. As such, he has no time to waste in meetings like this."

"Oh, but I do!?" She threw her hand up and let out a throaty laugh. "So I guess my work isn't enough for you!? Yeah, let's see you find someone else with two fucking PHDs who'll agree to–"

"Jupiter."

Cyrus spoke her name like a command, and as soon as he did so the room grew quiet. The woman squinted, as if the sound had dug into her chest like a knife, and leaned back into her chair.

It's not like he was jealous, but Saturn definitely wished he had as much of a presence as his boss. To be able to reign in someone as hotheaded as Jupiter by just saying her name…

"Good. Now…" Cyrus set his eyes on her. "I've been told that you not only failed to retrieve Ditto, but you let Mars escape and also lost many grunts in the process. Is this accurate?"

She crossed her arms and looked to the side, "Y-yeah… why are you even asking if you know already? I fucked up, alright? I don't need to be told that."

"I only needed your confirmation. Is it also true that, while escaping, you took in some of the prison inmates who'd been freed due to the destruction and brought them here?"

There was a sharp inhalation, and Saturn's eyes went wide, "You did  _what_!?"

Jupiter almost jumped out of her seat, looking like a kid who'd been caught with her hand on the cookie jar.

"T-the hell are y'all getting mad at me for!?" Her accent got thicker as her voice wavered. "You're the ones who said we don't have enough people to cover our shifts anymore! I just… I told them that I'd get them out of here if they agreed to work for Team Galactic. I thought… it was a good idea, at the time…"

"A good… a good idea!?" Saturn couldn't help it, he slammed his fist on the table and let the volume of his voice rise. "They're criminals! Don't you think having a bunch of convicts join us would justify what people already think of us!?"

She was about to reply when Cyrus raised a hand and, like before, both of them fell silent.

"Saturn, I believe I warned you about keeping your emotions in check. Please, do not yell."

He leaned back, color rising to his cheeks. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he contain himself all of a sudden? Not only had he been a failure during the mission but now he was acting in a way which surely made the boss even more disappointed in him.

"Firstly, I would like to warn you against casting judgment on those our society consider criminals," said Cyrus. "By that alone, wouldn't you say we're the same as them? The only difference is that we haven't been caught yet."

"But… that depends on the crime, doesn't it?" he argued. "What if they're murderers or.." He felt a clump on his throat and couldn't speak anymore, the rest of the options too horrifying to voice aloud.

"A valid concern. Associating with those kinds of people would only hurt our image. Which is why I already checked on their backgrounds and interviewed them personally."

Jupiter's shoulders dropped, and her eyes widened to the point where she looked like a Magikarp out of the water.

"…I beg your fucking pardon?" she whispered, lips turning pale. "T-then why the hell did you need to ask me about it!?"

"Did you really interview all of them?" asked Saturn. "In such a short amount of time?"

Their boss took his time rubbing his eyes and lightly yawning before giving a reply. The raspiness of his voice and the bags under his eyes told them he hadn't slept during the past few days, as usual.

"I wanted to see if you'd lie to me to save face. If you'd chosen to do so, I would've assigned the appropriate punishment." The woman's face grew pale. "And yes, I talked to all fourteen of them and determined that they're worthy of joining us. I've assigned them ranks and told them what commander's team they would join. I've told Astrea to update the rosters and give them to you as soon as possible."

The casual way in which he mentioned such an important detail was just like him, but it still shocked them. Everyone who'd managed to spend the barest amount of time around the boss could tell he worked harder than anyone else, and still he'd found time to go through such an arduous process without asking anyone else for help.

 _He really is amazing_ , Saturn couldn't help but think, a smile forming on his face.

And yet, that smile was lopsided, slightly more crooked than usual. There was a strange anxiety gnawing at his insides. Most of it he'd been carrying with him ever since what had happened with Ursa, but his words brought even more doubt to him. Having new recruits meant putting a lot of time and effort into getting to know them so he could find the best possible way to lead them. But no, that wasn't the source of all of it.

What had the boss meant by assigning rank? There were only three ranks in Team Galactic; grunts, commanders and the boss himself. Why bother specifying when it was clear all of them would become grunts?

 _You're thinking too hard about this_ , he told himself.  _Stop it._

"Yeah, about that." Jupiter kicked back a bit, placing her legs atop the table. "What are w–"

"Please don't put your feet on the table," Saturn pleaded.

She ignored him, "What are we gonna do about those grunts who used to work for Mars? Did you assign them to other teams or what?" She scratched her cheek. "Give them to Saturn, I don't wanna deal with any more trouble."

He fulminated her with his gaze, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Yes, I've been thinking about that for some time now," said Cyrus. "And yesterday I came up with a solution: I've promoted one of our grunts to the rank of commander. She will lead what used to be Mars' team, and will also incorporate many of our new recruits into it."

"R-really!?" Saturn's eyes brightened. "Who is it? Is it someone from my team?"

"You'll know once you read the roster. I'd like to avoid wasting time unnecessarily when there are still matters left to discuss."

From under the table he grabbed a sheet of paper and began reading it:

"Jupiter, the failure of your mission was at the very least eighty percent your fault, though bringing in those new recruits somewhat makes up for it." The woman's lips stretched into a smug smile, which died when Cyrus spoke again: "However, doing so without asking for permission is foolish at best, and harshly punishable at worst. As such, I've decided to go halfway and simply cut your pay for this month. That should be incentive enough to try harder next time."

The face Jupiter made could've been painted and exhibited as a true work of art. She parted her lips and let out a cacophony of half-formed words and sounds, none of which had any meaning besides the ever-growing tone of indignation behind them.

"That's bullshit!" She finally managed to say, her face turning as red as a Scizor's. "Like hell I'm gonna accept that!"

"Jupiter, calm down!" Saturn made an attempt to stand up, but the sheer anger in the woman's eyes discouraged him from getting closer. "You can't talk that way to–"

She slammed her fist on the table, "Shut up! Why should I get my pay cut just for that!?" She turned to look at Cyrus. "You think I fucked up? At least I didn't lose Uxie like a fucking moron!"

As soon as she said that, the room grew silent and cold. Saturn took his hands to his mouth, staring dumbfounded at what Jupiter had just said. How… how dare she…?

Cyrus' gaze veered up, and both commanders went stiff. Air escaped their lungs as if something had sucked it out.

He then blinked, and the feeling disappeared. A sigh escaped his lips, "A fair rebuttal. It's true that, out of everyone here, my failure was by far the most catastrophic."

The atmosphere returned to normal. Cyrus raised his hand slightly and stared at it, eyes dull and distant.

"However, I am already taking steps to fix my mistakes. You, on the other hand, need incentive. If you find my decision unfair, you're free to quit Team Galactic and head out into the world as a wanted woman."

As harsh and (kind of unfair) as Saturn found the boss' attitude to be, he couldn't deny he enjoyed Jupiter finally getting what she deserved. Not that he hated her, far from it, but a bit of payback was nice once in a while.

"Fucking…whatever," Jupiter's cheeks puffed up as she sat back and crossed her arms. "Tch, to be treated like this… I don't fucking deserve it…"

While she continued to mutter to herself, Cyrus grabbed the sheet of paper once more and continued:

"I shall assign the task of locating both Mars and Uxie later, but for now…" He stared at Saturn. "According to this report, you managed to recover Azelf but were not able to apprehend Ursa nor the documents. Is that right?"

Something hard and heavy formed on his stomach, "Y-yes."

"Is Ursa still alive?"

"I… think so. There was Drapion venom in her blood, but Azelf seemed to take care of most of it."

"I see…" There was a small pause. "That's means we still have a chance to find her. Good job, Saturn."

He couldn't have been more shocked if he'd seen the man smile or tell a joke.

"Finding those papers should be our top priority, closely followed by Mars and Rotom," he continued. "As for Mesprit and Uxie, I will take care of that myself once the time comes. I shall assign your tasks soon, but for now I believe we're done. Head off."

"Wh–, wha–," It took him a moment to gather his wits. "E-excuse me sir, but… I don't understand. What… what do you mean by  _good job_?"

A pair of eyebrows were raised his way, "It means what it means. You carried your mission more successfully than any of us," he said. "I thought it merited me commending you. That's all."

"But… I failed half of it," Saturn said, shoulders dropping. "And… and… you said I'd get processed next time I screwed up! I just thought…"

He made a gesture with his hand, words failing him.

"I see… so that's why you've looked so anxious all morning," Cyrus whispered to himself. "To put it bluntly… I was lying."

Saturn made a face like a Meowth grabbed by its tail, half-mumbles escaping his lips. Cyrus sighed, and proceeded to explain:

"You are my right hand, Saturn. I would never risk losing you just because of a few mistakes. My threat was meant to motivate you, and scare Jupiter, into working harder. That's all."

Jupiter set her jaw, eyes narrowing in anger.

"Still… I feel like I could've done a lot better," said Saturn, looking down. "I feel like I deserve some sort of punishment."

Cyrus stroked contemplatively, "I see… with that attitude in mind, perhaps a punishment would help. Very well, come here." He stood up from the chair. "I'll make this quick."

Fear spiked inside him as he heard that, but nonetheless he obeyed. Slowly he approached the man, limbs shaking and shoulders stiff. He reached his side, closed his eyes and waited for it.

And then, without warning, Cyrus reached with his hand toward his face and flicked his ear. Saturn squinted, surprised at first, until the pain flared up and he couldn't help but react.

"A-agh!" He took a step back, "What…?"

"Holy shit," whispered Jupiter.

Cyrus placed both hands behind his back, "There, I assume that will be punishment enough?"

None of them could reply, too stunned by the ridiculousness of the situation. Cyrus seemed to take this as confirmation, and spoke again.

"Good. Now, please head off. I have a meeting soon and I need to get ready for it."

 

* * *

 

 

The ride down the elevator was mostly silent, though Saturn couldn't tell whether it was because Jupiter was too angry to speak or simply falling asleep on her feet. Eyelids half-closed, she leaned against the back wall and yawned loudly every few seconds.

"Well… that was a bust," she finally said, voice groggy. "Woke up early for the meeting and this is what I get? No respect, man. No respect at all."

"…It's two in the afternoon."

A movement of her head told him she was either nodding or about to collapse, "Yeah… as I said, early."

His face unconsciously scrunched up as a heavy, acidic smell hit him like a gust of wind. Despite having never tried the substance, he had no problem identifying what it meant.

"Dear god, are you drunk?" His voice went slightly up from surprise. "Did you seriously start drinking right before the meeting?"

She let out a scoff, "Are you kidding me? How much of an idiot do you think I am?" One of her fingers tapped at the side of her forehead. "I drank last night, like I do after every failed mission. Y'know, to cheer myself up."

"You do that after every successful mission as well," he pointed out.

"That's for celebrating," she said. "Anyway, before going to sleep I just hooked an IV to my arm with some saline solution so I wouldn't wake up hung over. Good thing I thought of that, since they only notified me of the meeting a couple hours ago."

"I… what is wrong with you?"

"A good scientist always knows how to save face." she smiled smugly to herself. "Honestly though, I've dealt with worse. This one time I woke up in a trash compactor in the middle of the desert, hungry and hung over as shit, and I still got to work on time. You just need to be creative."

He made sure to roll his eyes only when she started yawning again, "God only knows how much more productive you'd be if you applied that creativity to your work."

The elevator came to a halt, giving him that awful feeling of his stomach and the rest of his body being pulled different ways. Judging by the way Jupiter placed a hand against her mouth, cheeks turning pale, she probably agreed as well. They stepped out and headed for the cafeteria. Not many grunts were around, but they could hear the yells and murmurs of conversations at the end of the hallway.

"Look… if the boss wants me to work harder then he has to pay me more. That's how it works," Jupiter said once her nausea eased.

"We are technically a non-profit organization," he argued. "He pays you as much as he can. Besides, the honor of working toward the next step of humanity should be reward enough for you."

After every word he spoke Jupiter would mimic a mouth opening and closing with her left hand, while rolling her eyes as obviously as possible.

"Wanna believe the nonsense the boss spews? Be my guest, but don't drag me into it," she said. "Personally I think he's full of shit. Not to mention every single person in this damn building is off their damn rocker."

Saturn's expression was downright rancorous; he was having a hard time not raising his voice as he replied.

"How… how can you be so awful?" He shook his head. "Is there nothing you believe in?"

"I believe that there's a tropical island somewhere with my name in it. And once I get enough money I'll be able to buy it along with its inhabitants and live the rest of my days in disgusting, self-indulgent luxury."

The sheer disgust in his face was hard to hide. Luckily Jupiter didn't seem to notice it, too entranced by her own fantasy. She almost tripped on the steps leading toward the cafeteria once they got there.

The room was –like most of the building– almost entirely painted in grey with a few red banners hanging from the walls, displaying Team Galactic's logo. About forty uniframe tables were sprinkled in rows, making out most of the right half of the room. At the other side was the thin wall separating them from the kitchen, with a long counter where the food was served.

While there were fewer grunts than usual (had the new recruits not been called to lunch yet?), Saturn couldn't help but smile at the amount of known faces which met his gaze as he looked over the room. The gloomy atmosphere of the past few weeks had been replaced with a more cheery one as almost everyone smiled, yelled or laughed while eating next to their teammates.

"Ugh… these assholes are so loud," complained Jupiter, placing a hand against her head. "I'll just… get a sandwich or something, maybe yell at a couple of people before going to bed. See ya."

Without another word she headed off. People would cease speaking and stare nervously at the woman as she made her way through the cafeteria. They'd all surely learnt the hard way that you did not bother Jupiter when hung over, especially if you were a mere grunt. Such an act would be akin to suicide.

Saturn shook his head slightly, trying to get the thought off his mind. There were too many of them already and he wasn't in the mood for making room at the moment. Slowly, nervously, he took one step into the cafeteria and looked around. Too many people. He wanted to greet everyone he passed and be friendly, but something heavy and oppressive pulled at his stomach, erasing all excitement and appetite he could've had.

 _What's… going on?_  He asked himself, frowning.  _The boss praised me, he said I did a good job. Shouldn't I be happy?_

And yet, he couldn't help but feel like he'd failed, somehow. Met– no, Ursa was still out there, and so were the documents the boss so desperately needed. There was no way he could be satisfied with such a lackluster result…

_She's alive._

He could've gone after them once Azelf was trapped in the Master Ball. He still had his Crobat with him, and with his speed it would've been a piece of cake to track Ursa. Then all he'd have to do was take the documents from her and…

_Leave her to die._

A terrible shiver traveled all throughout his body. No… even if Ursa had betrayed them, she didn't deserve that… did she? She was just confused, that's all. Those meddlesome emotions of her had led her to believe that what they were doing was horrible, but there was still hope for her. After all, Team Galactic's truth was absolute, right? It was… it was the right thing to do…

_No one who truly believed in Cyrus' plans would suffer so much making them come to fruition._

Azelf's words rang in his mind, as loud and all-encompassing as he'd heard them that time. Saturn's fingers unconsciously curled into fists. His eyes stung and his chest burned for some reason. And… why was he feeling lightheaded? He felt as if he were a few inches off from his body, he couldn't concentrate on a single thought, couldn't…

"Hey, Sat!"

He was forcibly taken out of his thoughts. It took him a moment to compose himself; to breathe, blink and do those things normal people did when they weren't assaulted by random panic attacks.

As he turned toward the voice he saw an arm raised high, attached to someone who was definitely waving at him with a smile on his face. Pictor, one of his grunts. He stood out easily amidst the group of six sitting on that table, due to his short stature and rosy cheeks.

"Yo', come sit with us!" He yelled loud enough for the entire cafeteria to hear.

"Saturn's with us, shithead!" A blonde girl yelled from a nearby table. "Don't go hogging him just 'cause he's popular now!"

"You guys get him all the time!"

"Yeah well maybe there's a reason for that!"

Out of nowhere a piece of bread the size of a fist flied through the air, barely missing a grunt's face and smashing into their plate. The trajectory made it seem like it came from one of the tables reserved for Jupiter's team. A theory which was confirmed as a girl rose from it and started yelling.

"Shut the hell up you blue bastards! We're trying to eat over here!" Her tone was much more aggressive than those around her. "You wanna kiss your leader's ass, do it on your own time!"

"You're just mad 'cause Team Jupiter sucks ass!" Pictor yelled back, earning a few of cheers from his teammates. "Come on guys, let's show'em who owns the place! Team Saturn! Team Saturn! Team Saturn!"

Soon the entire room was nothing but a loud, wall shaking cacophony of screams and cheers. Those from his team hollered while pounding on the table with their fists, while the members of Team Jupiter either tried to drown them out by screaming their team's name harder or simply settled with thrown pieces of bread.

Saturn looked down, and despite the sigh which escaped his lips he couldn't help but smile. His friends… his family… it'd been such a long time since he'd seen them cause a ruckus so enthusiastically. He figured he had the boss to thank for that; the speech he gave in Celestic had finally garnered Team Galactic the attention they deserved. Their fight was no longer seemingly in vain; they were at last being taken seriously.

Indeed… it was all because of him…

"All right everyone, settle down!" He forced himself to take a step forward, trying to ignore the thought. "This isn't a competition!"

He shifted awkwardly toward the nearby tables, trying to calm down the ruckus while smiling back to those who greeted him. All around people congratulated him on his successful mission and tried to invite him to their table, but he declined politely, telling them he was feeling quite drained and would prefer to have a peaceful lunch by himself.

He grabbed a tray with steak and mashed potatoes while his gaze moved all throughout the room, looking for a good place to sit. It didn't take him long for something to catch his eye; at the furthermost table on the left there were only two grunts, their bodies almost obscured by the shadow of the pillar next to the wall. They sat in silence, heads and shoulders down. Even from afar, Saturn could feel the gloomy atmosphere they exuded.

Pyxis and Orion barely looked up at him as he sat next to them. Their plates were mostly full. Her fork tinkled against the wood of the table as she moved it anxiously, while the man's gaze was set on a small tablet displaying some words Saturn couldn't quite read.

"G-greetings," he muttered, forming a nervous smile. "Is… everything all right?"

It was the wrong question to ask, that much was made obvious by the look they gave him. He almost stood up and fled right there, but he knew it wasn't the right thing to do.

"No. It's not… it's not freaking all right," Pyxis' face scrunched up, her fork furiously stabbing the pasta in front of her. "What do you want me to say, huh?"

Saturn leaned back, "I… if there's anything I can do…"

"Drop it," she snarled. "If I wanted to talk to you I'd say so. You don't gotta pretend you care."

Orion's arm traveled the length of the table, his hand falling on top of hers. The gesture was quick and almost unconscious, as if he'd done it a million times before.

"Pyx." He spoke her name softly, like a whisper. "He's just trying to help."

 _And he is so incredibly bad at it_ , a part of Saturn's mind spoke up. Couldn't really argue with that. Two of his most loyal grunts had recently lost one of their closest friends and he couldn't even console them. What a commander he was.

Pyxis looked to the side, rubbing her eyelids with one of her sleeves, "Y-yeah, I know. I'm sorry." She lost control of her voice for a moment, and when she spoke again there was fire in her words. "It's not your fault, it's… it's  _her_  fault. That damn bitch's fault…"

The sudden and unexpected curse made him flinch, though for once he was willing to let it slide. Proper or not, if there was a time to let out curse words it was probably to refer to the person who had killed one of your friends.

"I don't get it, she's just… she's just another stupid trainer," she said. "And now everyone outside is treating her… like a hero or something. If they knew what she did…"

"They'll know soon enough," Saturn assured her. "Now that everyone heard the boss' speech, people are gonna start thinking differently." He tried his best to hide just how unsure of his own words he was. "We'll topple this trainer-centric society and build our new world on top of it, I promise."

Pyxis swallowed down whatever was stuck in her throat, and sent a weak smile his way. A sliver of hope shone on her eyes.

"Speaking of that…"

Orion tapped the screen of the tablet absentmindedly, "I was just reading about it. News about the Celestic attack and the prison break finally started circulating." He slid the device across the table so Saturn could reach it. "The Association held some kinda conference, and the people are  _not_  happy."

Curiosity tingling through his skin like electricity, he bent down slightly and started reading the article:

 

* * *

 

 

**The Association's response to Celestic's tragedy: Practical or just insensitive?**

Following the horrific events of the past Sunday, all Sinnohans have been wondering what kind of statement the Association would air. It is well known that their response to the Veilstone incident a couple weeks ago has been perceived by the public as lackluster and irresponsible. In the brink of what many assume is a new wave of terrorism, how are our protectors supposed to keep us safe?

Last night, Elite Four member and Association Chief Manager Lucian Dusk agreed to hold a press conference in one of the League buildings residing within the Lily of the Valley island. Both terrorist attacks were discussed at length, and while no detailed explanation of what their plan of action is was given to the public, Lucian assured that every ounce of the Association's power and influence would be used to combat Team Galactic.

' _It would be foolish to talk in detail about how we plan to deal with this particular terrorist cell,'_  the man explained after a question from a reporter.  _'After all, what would we gain from telling our enemy the means by which we intend to destroy them? Even then, I can promise the good people of Sinnoh that neither I nor the rest of the League will rest until those criminals are brought to justice.'_

One of our reporters asked what would this mean for the League challenge itself. Would the Gym leaders be too busy to accept challengers now? What of the Elite Four and the Champion? This is the reply we got:

' _There is no need to suspend the League Challenge nor any kind of trainer activity in the region. While the Gym leaders will help in our investigation, they have been specifically tasked with becoming the protectors of the towns and cities they watch over. Their Gyms will remain open, and while their leaders might be slightly busier than usual, challengers are still welcome. As for the Elite Four, the rarity in which we receive challengers and the short duration of the battles we partake in means it won't be necessary to change our modus operandi.'_

To that, someone asked if the Champion herself would be part of this modus operandi as well. Was this unflinching attitude due to her own personal ideas, many of which had been voiced by her during the Festival of Spirit, just before the terrorist attack? What of her stance that all Sinnohans had a responsibility to fight Team Galactic, did that mean there was no point to the Association at all?

' _I assure you, the Champion is doing all she can to solve this problem. And in the extremely rare event that a trainer does defeat all four of us, I'm sure she'll be more than delighted to accept a battle from them.'_  After saying this, he stayed silent for a few seconds before continuing.  _'As for your other question, I would appreciate it if you didn't twist the Champion's words. She did not say the citizens themselves should fight Team Galactic, she only spoke of combating their ideology. We will take care of everything else.'_

He was then asked if he agreed with the Champion's speech during the festival:

' _Whether I agree or not is inconsequential. We live in a land of free thinking. As long as we both try our best to protect our nation, I see no harm in holding dissenting ideologies.'_

Our reporter asked if he thought the same of what the leader of Team Galactic had said during his own speech. In that case, what would stop people from believing his statements about the Veilstone attack being pre-arranged by the government?

' _It pains me that I even have to take the time to answer such a question. As… let's say bold, as that man's claim was, those with even the barest hints of a working brain will realize that he provided no evidence for such a conspiracy. Moreover, whether any of his criticisms of the Association are accurate or not, his right to voice them disappeared the moment he dared attack innocent civilians. That is all I have to say on the matter.'_

Despite further questioning, he refused to comment on topics such as the Champion's current whereabouts or the two young trainers who are rumored to have helped her defeat Team Galactic's leader. Inyssa Dawn and Barry Paladino –both of whom have earned notoriety thanks to their previous fights against the terrorist cell– are currently residing in Celestic's main hospital, slowly recovering from their various wounds. All attempts to interview them have failed due to the boy's parents (Sarah Paladino and Tower Tycoon Palmer) having forbid any reporter from meeting with them.

Much unrest has followed the official press conference. Almost from night to morning, all of Sinnoh seems cut down the middle on this particular issue. Many of those associated with the profession of Pokemon training condemn Team Galactic's actions and ideologies, while a large amount of civilians confess that at least part of what their leader said during his speech rang true.

Indeed, if one were to pay attention to the region's economic growth following the end of the war, it becomes clear what part of the issue is. A massive growth in GDP which goes hand in hand with a decrease in per capita income paints a very vivid picture of the state in which the Association and trainers in general have left the region.

Following the press conference, a few people have–

 

* * *

 

 

The sound of his Pokétch going off almost made him jump. Startled out of his curiosity regarding the article, Saturn looked down at his wrist and saw the Message button flashing red.

"Ugh… hold on a second."

Huffing in frustration, he pressed the button. The message had been sent by one of his grunts, and it said:

_There's a situation in the lounge. There might be trouble. We need your help._

It seemed hazily written, but that wasn't the problem. Alarmed, Saturn stood up and looked toward the hallway at the other side of the room, which led straight to the lounge.

"Sorry, I have to go," he formed an apologetic smile. "We'll talk about that article more later if you want."

And with that he headed off, a strange anxiety gnawing at his senses.

 

* * *

 

A commotion was waiting for Saturn as he entered the lounge. A simple look at the group of people stationed in the middle of the room and he understood there was trouble. The way they stood close to each other, the raised shoulders and knit eyebrows, the volume of their voices; it was like the first drop of rain before a storm.

Standing up straight, he approached the twenty-some grunts and spoke as clearly as he could:

"What's going on here?"

He did his best to endure all their gazes as they turned toward him. About half of them were wholly unfamiliar, which meant most if not all the inmates rescued by Jupiter had to be in the group. Somehow, he could tell. Their faces were more weathered, and their eyes lacked the brightful youth which most grunts carried with them.

They were hesitant for a moment. Judging. Wondering how much authority he had, if they could get away with airing their anger at him instead of whatever had been their previous target. But before they could reach a decision, someone spoke from within their inner circle:

"Your clothes," a woman's voice said, "you're a commander, right?"

Even though no one was talking he still had trouble picking up her voice, due to how soft-spoken she was, not to mention the clear boredom in her tone. As old and new grunts alike made space, he could finally see her.

 _Plain_  was the best way he could've described her. She didn't look older than twenty, though the lines on her face said otherwise. The Galactic uniform she wore fit loosely, and even though Saturn was the shortest commander she still only reached to his chin. Her black hair was shaven, over which she wore a black, wool beanie.

Her eyelids were partly closed, as if she were about to fall asleep. If she was unsettled by the amount of angry people surrounding her –most of which probably weighed twice as much as her–, she did not show it in the slightest

"Yes… I am commander Saturn." As he said that, he could feel the others tensing up around him. "I heard the commotion from the other room. Is there a problem here?"

A moment of confusion, and then everyone started talking at once. Loudly, uncoordinated. It made him flinch, made his anxiety spike, but he knew he couldn't show any sign of weakness to them.

"She's tryna tell us what to do!" A burly man with a three o'clock shadow spoke first

"–ittle bitch think she can order us ar–"

"She's just a brat!"

"–hell does she think she is!?"

A bunch of screeching Mankey, that's what they reminded Saturn of. He tried his best to hide his distaste for the foul way in which they expressed themselves, and raised a hand to silence them.

"All right, let's all calm down here. There is no need for the use of profanities." His voice managed to ease some of the tension in the air, but not much. "Now, what is this about being ordered around?" He addressed the woman. "Would you mind explaining?"

She stared for a beat before nodding, her lips parting lazily as she replied.

"A pleasure Saturn, my name is Asta. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to talk," she said. "To be honest, I don't understand what's happening either. I told them to gather here and listen closely while I established a line of command, but they didn't seem to take the suggestion very well."

From under his breath, another girl spoke, "You told us to obey everything you said."

"I thought it'd make the process faster for all of us," said Asta. "Say, do any of you know how to organize large groups of people? I do, which is why I asked for your attention and obedience."

Somehow Saturn didn't look the most confused out of everyone around her, and he'd just arrived to the scene. He could feel the tension of the room rising again. That burly guy and a couple others were forming fists, frustration clear in their expressions. He had to act fast.

He cleared his throat, "Uh… Asta, was it? I don't mean to be rude, but I think you might be confused as to how we operate here." He tried to sound as gentle and approachable as possible. "I applaud your initiative, and it's nice to see a new recruit so eager to do work, but I'm afraid only commanders have the authority to give out orders."

There was a pause, in which a few of the grunts smiled smugly to themselves and chuckled at Asta's apparent obliviousness. The woman simply stared at Saturn as if she were looking past him, and replied after a few blinks.

"…Yes. I already know that." She dragged her words, a tinge of irritation in her voice. "I'm… not seeing the problem here."

"What… what do you mean you don't see the problem?" Saturn's smile crooked a bit. "I'm telling you that grunts can't order other grunts around. The only ones who can do that…"

"Are commanders," she finished his sentence. "Which… I am. Therefore, I can order them as much as I want."

A cold shiver ran down Saturn's back, "I… w-what?"

"You're rather slow on the uptake, aren't you?" she whispered. "Here, maybe this'll help jog your brain."

With as casually as a flick of a hand could be, she pulled up the sleeve on her right hand and lifted it to meet his eyes. Around her wrist was tied a familiar device; the Pokétch's screen was turned off and at first glance there didn't seem to be anything strange about it. That is, until he took notice of the dark color of the carcass and the extra button at the side of the screen.

His eyes went wide. It was one of the modified versions Charon had created; with it one could track down the location of every single grunt whether they were in or out of the facility, not to mention they also worked as a makeshift Pokédex. However, only commanders had the privilege of possessing such a device.

He then noticed a detail which had escaped him until then. While half the people around him were new recruits, the other half were all the remaining members of Mars' team. If they were all gathered together… but no, there was no way. The boss wouldn't… would he?

"There has to be some sort of mistake," he said, a hint of desperation in his voice. "You're… you're a new recruit, you can't be a commander!"

"That's what I've been saying!" From the crowd yelled a familiar girl, one of Mars' previous lackeys. "She probably stole it or something. She's a criminal, ain't she!?"

Asta sighed as she let her arm fall, "I'm offended you would accuse me like that. Trust me, I'm plenty honest when it comes to my criminal behavior." She raised a finger as to get everyone's attention, and Saturn unconsciously felt the need to shut up and listen. "It's a pain, but I'll explain what happened so you all can stop yelling at me.

"Truth is, when I got drafted and saw what kind of jobs the rest of the grunts had, I decided it wasn't really for me. I went to the boss' office and, after explaining myself, he agreed to let me be the new commander." She stopped for a moment, out of breath. "That's… pretty much it."

So absurd were her claims, Saturn could barely process what she was saying. Luckily, the tall girl who'd spoken before aired his complaints for him:

"That's bullshit!" She stomped her foot on the ground, earning a couple mumbles of approval from the people around her. "You can't visit the boss whenever you want; there's always guards in front of his door and we're not allowed to meet him!"

He nodded unconsciously, "Y-yes, that's true. Not only that, but the idea of a new recruit becoming a commander right away is… absurd!" He could feel the heat rising to his face. "Your claim doesn't make any sense, Asta."

What could compel her to lie like that? Saturn asked himself. And why did she look so sure of herself?

"Say…" She spoke, and the room fell silent. "...my predecessor…. Mars, was it? If I'm not mistaken, she specialized in stealth, espionage and assassination." Her gaze went up to meet his. "How I entered the boss' office without anyone noticing… why he agreed to give me her position… I'll trust you to put two and two together, since you're the same rank as me."

Her implication was not lost on Saturn, though the mere idea seemed so… ridiculous. Did she really expect him to believe that someone as small and unassuming as her had similar skills to Mars? Judging by what happened next, he was not the only one who thought so:

"Oh shut up!" The tall, burly man stepped forward, anger clear in his scarred face. "You're just a fucking twerp! Like hell I'm gonna let you boss me 'round!"

Asta nodded absentmindedly, "Hm… if this is the sort of brains I'm working with, my job might be more difficult than I thought."

"I told you to shut up!"

The man closed the distance between them, and before Saturn could intervene he grabbed Asta by the wrist. Pain flashed through her eyes for a moment, which only served to make him smile.

"I'm the one talking now, and you're gonna stand here and listen," he said, eyebrows knit tightly together. "Got it, sweetheart?"

The rest of the grunts laughed and whistled; a couple even began to clap at the man's violent behavior. Saturn could feel the air grow denser, and an entirely different kind of heat spreading through his limbs. Grabbing her arm like that, talking down to her… he was obviously trying to put himself above her, he'd seen such tactics a million times. Most of them, he bitterly remembered, were aimed at him.

However, just when he was about to intervene, Asta spoke.

"You might want to let go of me. For your own good."

Her voice hit them like a hammer to the face. In a second, all the laughter and smiles vanished completely, leaving the room silent. The man grabbing her hesitated, his smile dying on his lips. For a second it seemed he was about to obey, but whatever idiotic pride burnt inside his chest apparently convinced him to do the opposite.

"I–I told you to shut up!" He hollered, fingers closing with even more strength around her wrist. "Who do you think you are to boss me–!"

It was the work of an instant. There was no time to react, no time to even blink. Saturn's eyes barely caught the afterimage of something rising from the man's shadow, and then the outline of his body began to glow.

Invisible strings tugged at his back, and the next second he became a blur. He was thrown across the room like a bullet, his body crashing violently against the nearest wall.

The impact reverberated all throughout the room and up Saturn's body, making him shiver. The pink-ish energy surrounding the man kept him pinned against the wall for a moment; after which he crumpled like a house of cards. His limbs lay limply on the ground, right arm bent backwards in an unnatural way.

Only then did the creature who'd just appeared lowered its arm, the glow surrounding its body dissipating into the air like smoke. It looked to the side and met Asta's gaze. The woman nodded, her lips forming a miniscule smile.

No one spoke. It was as if the air in the room had been sucked up by a vacuum. Too shocked, to scared to even try and take a step back from the horrifying Pokemon now standing amidst them. Saturn's legs began to shake; every cell in his body told him to run, to get away from the creature as fast as humanly possible, but he was completely frozen. He could do little but stare at its huge, blood-red eyes, which seemed just as bored as those of its trainer.

Another similarity it shared with her was its weak, brittle appearance. Its torso was so thin one could easily wrap both hands around it, and its arms looked as frail as twigs. Most of its lower body was covered in a white, flowing gown, the folds of which moved as if a gust of wind were caressing them. Its green hair curled down the middle of its face and down at the sides of its head, perfectly framing the shape of its eyes, the underside of which were a dark grey, as if the creature hadn't slept in a long time.

The rational part of Saturn's brain forced itself to notice all those things, in a vain attempt to keep the rest of him from panicking. However, the moment he looked down at its chest, the endeavor became fruitless. A red, triangular stake was stabbed through where the Pokemon's heart should've been, its sharp end jutting out menacingly toward him.

He almost had a heart attack as a sudden, beeping sound came out of his own Pokétch. An electronic voice came to life from within the device, booming all throughout the room:

" _Gardevoir: The Embrace Pokemon – Psychic/Fairy Type. Unlike most Psychic types, its powers manifest not through its mind but through the red stake jutting out of its chest and back, which happens to be Gardevoir's heart. While difficult to train, those who manage to form a bond with this Pokemon will find themselves protected from all harm. The moment it senses that its trainer is in danger it will unleash the full might of its psychokinetic abilities, allowing it to create powerful illusions and even bend space itself."_

Saturn clung to every word, thankful for any kind of distraction from having to acknowledge the creature in front of him. Unfortunately, it didn't last long. As soon as the voice died the room was plunged into silence once more. That is, until Asta decided to speak:

"Thank you, Saturn." She placed a hand on her chest, sending a polite smile his way. "You saved me the trouble of having to explain it myself. This right here is Sabrina, my dear companion. She's been with me ever since I was a kid, and is also the reason I've earned my… reputation, so to speak."

The smallest hints of pride flashed across her eyes. For a moment no one spoke, the room so silent that everyone could tell when someone amidst them parted her lips to speak. It was the tall girl who'd insulted Asta a few minutes ago:

"Wai–wait… I know you." Her eyes were wide with shock, sweat falling down her forehead. "I heard of you… back in the war…"

Her voice seemed to bring everyone back to reality. The shuffling of feet was heard as most grunts took steps back, while others (the older ones) narrowed their eyes, realization dawning on them soon after.

"Y-yeah! Me too!" said a pudgy man with a few grey hairs on his head. "Wasn't it… some woman with a… Pokemon like that, who killed a bunch of people during the war? They called her… uh..."

"Asta, the pale devil."

She spoke her own title with pride, lips curling into a barely noticeable smile.

"Strangely enough, I was hired by the government back then. They gave me plenty of targets and money for taking them out, at least until the new Champion rose to power and decided that my services… were no longer necessary." A bitter smile formed on her lips. "She took Sabrina away from me and decided to lock me up, even though I was only doing my job. Funny how the system works. Though… thanks to Team Galactic, we are reunited once again."

Without looking she stretched her arm and placed a hand on the Pokemon's shoulders, whose eyes narrowed slightly in appreciation. Saturn would've considered the gesture heartwarming, were it not for what he'd seen that thing do.

His gaze moved toward the other side of the room where that man still lay on the floor, not quite unconscious but clearly unable to move much, a low grunt of pain escaping his lips. Asta noticed him staring:

"Don't worry, he'll be fine. A broken arm has never killed anybody," she said. "I needed a way to clearly establish my authority, and he happened to serve as a perfect example."

Saturn gulped, his voice coming out fractured, "E-example?"

She took a step forward, staring up at everyone around her. Very few were able to meet her gaze.

"I'm a commander. I can't have those under me not respect me," she stated. "For all of your sakes, I hope that demonstration was enough to show why you should do what I say, when I say so. If anyone here is not convinced yet, I'd be happy to find a different way to change your mind." She crossed her arms tightly. "But that won't be necessary… right?"

Her tone made it clear it was a rhetorical question, one that she expected everyone to have the same answer to. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the grunts around her began to lower their heads, lips pursed in resignation. Their expression was gloom, but familiar. It was the same Saturn had seen in all those who used to follow Mars.

"Good. Looks like we're all in agreement." She relaxed her posture and breathed in. "Now, I think I'll have myself some lunch while I think of a good way to schedule our team's objectives. All of you stay put until I contact you again."

Her gaze moved toward Saturn, whose shoulders stiffened as if they were made of stone, "Would you like to accompany me? You look like the type who enjoys a good tripe hot pot, which is what I'm craving at the moment." Her smile was small, but cheerful. "I would also like to ask some questions about the facility, if that's okay with you."

For what felt like an eternity, he couldn't answer. Something blocked his throat, something hard and cold and heavy. The Gardevoir's eyes were still set on him, sharp like needles, sending the clear message to everyone in the room that whoever dared defy her trainer would suffer the same fate as the wounded man at the other side of the room.

"Th-this…" his voice came out like a whisper. "This is not… the boss would never…"

Asta raised an eyebrow, tilting her head to the side. He felt as if she could stare directly into his mind.

"You're unusually naïve and good-natured for a commander…" a strange sort of curiosity was reflected in her eyes. "How interesting."

As if that explained everything, she shrugged and began to walk away. The Gardevoir followed closely, her feet not touching the ground as her gown flowed behind her.

"If you have complaints about my promotion, feel free to voice them with the boss," he heard her say, her back turned to him. "And after that, feel free to join me for lunch. If you haven't eaten yet, that is."

Saturn could only watch as she exited the room, leaving a group of confused and incredibly frightened people behind.

 

* * *

 

 

Mars looked back toward the sea while she finished changing into the dry clothes she'd recently stolen. The waves were calm, barely a crinkle to be seen on the infinite blanket of blue stretching toward the horizon. Lucky, considering all the swimming she'd done to get back to Sinnoh's mainland.

And now here she stood, alone and completely aimless. Her strategy of tracking Shadi through Team Galactic had been a bust, which meant it was time to find other opportunities.

A sinister smile stretched across her face as she turned around, facing the looming shape of Mt Coronet in the horizon. It was a good thing, then, that opportunities were easy to come by for someone like her.

"All right then…" she grunted, letting out a yawn. "…let's throw some chaos at the wall and see what sticks."


	46. Act 3: Valor

Inyssa wasn't thankful for much. Most things in life she considered truly valuable (Barry, her Pokemon, her skill as a trainer and her analytical mind) she'd all acquired herself, without anyone's help.

Still, all things considered, she had to admit her family's health insurance had pretty much paid for itself ever since she began her journey.

A grunt of pain escaped her lips as she sat on the chair in front of her doctor's desk. Its metal felt uncomfortably cold, since she was wearing nothing more than a hospital gown.

The woman across her looked down at a stack of papers on her hand, absentmindedly biting the cap of her pen while her gaze flew through what was written in them. The nameplate on top of her desk read:  _'Dr. Sandra Moore'_. She looked young, probably no older than thirty.

"All right… shall we start?" she asked, clearing her throat.

Inyssa shifted uncomfortably on her seat.

It wouldn't have been accurate to say she'd been worried sick all week. After all, about half of it she'd spent in and out of consciousness, mind hazy and deliriously feverish. Even four days after stabilizing, her body still felt like someone had wrung it out like a wet piece of cloth. Walking more than a few steps made her lightheaded, and her appetite had pretty much dropped to the negatives.

Not to mention the searing pain on her back every time she moved.

Still, she might be slightly nervous, she thought. It wasn't every day you got told the results of your medical tests which would determine whether you'd suffer permanent muscle damage or not.

With a gulp she swallowed down whatever was stuck in her throat and replied, "Yeah… I'm ready."

"First, I'd say congratulations are in order." She looked over her glasses, forming a tiny smile. "I've been told you're recovering a lot faster than expected. Kids nowadays must be made of stronger stuff than in my time."

Inyssa let out a nervous laugh, trying to ignore the feeling of someone smiling smugly behind her. Even though she knew the doctor couldn't see Uxie, its presence still made her uneasy.

"Now… let's work from your lesser injuries up to the more severe ones," Sandra said as she adjusted her glasses. "Looks like the bruise on your leg and the cut above your eye have stopped swelling. I didn't want to give you painkillers for those in fear they might mix badly with the rest of the medicine you've been taking, and because I considered them not to be very serious injuries."

Inyssa nodded, "I didn't notice those much, to be honest. They only hurt when I touch them."

"I'm sure they'll heal shortly," said Sandra. "As for your shoulders… it seems you pulled a muscle on each. Have you been applying ice bags like the nurses told you to?"

She tried to reply, but her words weren't feeling very cooperative at the moment. A memory resurfaced when she closed her eyes; she saw herself again, struggling furiously to set herself free from the Galactic bastards trying to immobilize her. She remembered the pain when they pulled at her arms with much more strength than necessary. She remembered the sound of electricity and the smell of blood and burnt flesh, though strangely enough no images were attached to those particular sensations.

It was a very vivid memory, one which vanished the moment she opened her eyes again, which flashed golden for a moment before returning to normal.

"Inyssa? Are you okay?"

She startled back to reality, and nodded weakly, "Yeah… yeah, I've been doing that. It doesn't… hurt anymore."

"As expected." Sandra looked down and wrote something on one of the papers. "Now… for the big one."

Inyssa held her breath, fingers curled painfully against the gown over her lap. This was it, the moment of truth, if one could even call it that.

A clearing of her throat, and Sandra spoke, "It looks like… you won't suffer any long-term damage from the attack you received from that Pokemon." Her painted lips stretched into an amused smile. "Congratulations."

She didn't exactly collapse from relief into her chair, but the way she sighed and slouched her shoulders could've been mistaken for that.

"When looking at wounds caused by electrocution, there are three things we focus on," Sandra explained. "The circulatory, respiratory and nervous system. It seems your heart might've stopped for a moment after you were attacked, but we haven't noticed any irregularity or arrhythmia since then. Your lungs are fine too, as strong and healthy as they've ever been, for how much that's worth. As for the rest…" She clicked her tongue, tilting her head slightly, "…there is some minor damage to the skin and nerves on your back, but nothing that can't be healed. You might suffer minor spasms and cramps on those particualr muscles, but that's as worse as it'll get."

A throaty, weak laugh left Inyssa's throat. She leaned back into her chair and looked up at the ceiling, her breathing getting less shallow as the seconds passed.

"Thank fucking god…" she whispered. "I… guess I lucked out, huh."

Sandra pursed her lips in an attempt not to imitate her laugh, "That depends on what you consider lucky. People survive being struck by lightning all the time. What happened to you isn't much different." She shook her head. "Honestly, what almost killed you wasn't that, it was the fever and exhaustion you arrived here with."

"I'm sturdy enough to survive that," Inyssa shrugged. "Though I kinda underestimated how taxing teleporting is on your body."

She tried to sound as confident as possible, something which had never been her strong suit unless she were talking about Pokemon fighting. Still, it was the lie she'd chosen and she needed to stick with it. She'd told everyone except Barry that she'd escaped Team Galactic's grasp by stealing someone's Pokeball and using their Pokemon to teleport away.

"You're not the first to make that mistake," said Sandra, apparently not noticing her lie. "Most people think using a Pokemon to teleport is like opening two doors in different points in space and stepping through them. In reality, when your body is teleported it loses as much energy as it would've expended covering that distance on foot. Roughly." She made a  _'so-so'_  gesture with her hand. "In the past people have died of exhaustion by trying to teleport themselves to other regions. Your case wasn't as bad, though you certainly came close."

While the thought did make her feel like a Charmander whose tail someone had dumped a bucket of water on, she was shocked to realize how accustomed she'd gotten to the sensation. The words  _'You almost died'_  didn't seem to carry the same weight as before, after everything she'd been through.

 _That's… good?_  She thought, biting her lip.  _I… think?_

"Despite your rapid recovery, I'd suggest you stay here for at least another week before we discharge you," the woman said. "Just to be sure."

She let out a sigh, "If I have no other choice…"

"You don't, actually," Sandra smiled. "But let's try to make the best of it, all right? Give your body the rest it deserves."

Inyssa smiled back, and it surprised her how easily it came to her. Normally smiling to people other than Barry was something she had to prepare for.

Even then, she noticed a hint of nervousness in the doctor's smile. As the silence in the room grew, she looked down first at her papers and then at the other side of the room, where close to the door lay a tall piece of furniture much like a wardrobe, only flat. The dual doors were wide open, a six foot mirror stuck to the inside of each one.

Sandra finally spoke, "We can postpone it if you…"

"No," said Inyssa, jaw set. "I'll do it."

She stood up, the muscles on her back flaring as if they were being stretched to their limits. Slowly she turned toward the double mirrors, and did not move. Strange, considering that's exactly what she was telling her legs to do.

 _Come on_ , she chastised herself.  _Putting it off won't solve anything._

Sandra placed a hand on her shoulder, and with premeditated care she helped her make her way there. As soon as she stepped in between the mirrors her breathing became shallower. Infinite copies of herself stretched at her right and left, all looking equally brittle, while another endless row of Uxie floated above her. She felt its invisible eyes on her back. Quiet and observant. Curious.

"Whenever you feel like it," the doctor reminded her.

Inyssa let out a sound which could've been a throaty  _'yes'_  and, wanting to get it over with as fast as possible, undid the straps on the side of her gown and let it fall to the ground.

She closed her eyes just before the image appeared on the mirror, and hated herself for it. What was she, a fucking child? All she'd been through, all the times she'd looked at death in the face, and it was a scar what really terrified her? No, she was better than that. Pushing her fear to the deepest part of her mind, she forced herself to open her eyes and look up.

Her blood turned cold. There wasn't any fear, or sadness, only shock.

 _Gruesome_  was the first word which came to mind, and if she were fully aware of what she was thinking she would've considered it pretty accurate.

She could see the exact place where the attack had hit her. A few inches below her left shoulder blade there was a patch of burned flesh the size of a fist. The skin was wrinkly and mangled, and it reminded her of the disgusting film which formed over milk as it boiled.

It was painful to look at, yes, but if that'd been as far as it went Inyssa could've at least reacted normally to it. Unfortunately, there was more.

From the center of the burn mark grew dozens of thinner, vine-like scars, each of which broke off into a dozen more as they carved their way through her body. On her back they reached up to the base of her nape and down to her tailbone. And on her arms…

_O-oh my god…_

Another memory flashed through her eyes. Suddenly, she was a child again. Her tiny hands grabbed onto Shadi's arm strongly as she tried to bury her face on her sister's clothes, afraid of the painting she'd just seen. Afraid of that terrible woman, of her bloody sword and the boundless rage burning behind her eyes.

She remembered the way her bare arms looked. Those vine-like scars carved onto them, twisting around each other like ropes of fire.

They weren't exactly the same, no. Inyssa's had a different shape, more resembling lightning bolts than flames, but it was hard to ignore the similarities. They curved the exact same way along the length of her arms, and both ended at the base of their palms.

"I know this can be a lot to take in…"

She barely registered the doctor's voice as she spoke. Her gaze was set, unblinking, on the image displayed in front of her. She didn't move, couldn't move, her bones feeling made of ice.

"This type of scarring is common to those who have been hit by lightning or by some electric Pokemon's attack," Sandra continued. "In the medical field it's referred to as a Lichtenberg figure, though most people know it by the name  _'lightning flower'_."

Inyssa wanted to laugh. She didn't know why, it would've been incredibly out of place, but still she couldn't help it. Something about what she'd just heard was terribly funny to her.

"As I said before, there is very little chance of these scars causing you pain or discomfort after you leave this hospital. However…" There was a short, heavy pause. "I'm… afraid there's only so much your body can do to heal them. Eventually they will fade from that bright red to a pale silver, but I don't think they'll ever fully disappear."

Somehow, she'd known that from the moment she'd seen them. The way they looked, the way they felt, there was a certain finality to them, and as she spun her arms to examine every inch of the burning spider web of scars, she might've come up with an idea as to why.

 _You made your bed, now lie in it_. That phrase came to mind, and Inyssa couldn't help but smile.

"I apologize for not being able to help you further," she heard Sandra say behind her. "I know it must be hard, but if you need any–"

"No, it's fine."

Her fingers curled strongly into fists, and the stretching of her muscles sent a slightly painful shiver throughout her body. As she closed her eyes, she could almost feel a small cackle of electricity surging through her scars, which made the hair on the back of her neck stand up on end. She felt Uxie smile behind her.

When she spoke, her voice carried some of the strength it'd lost during the past week, "I… kinda knew something like this would happen eventually. Honestly, I was ready to deal with much worse." She remembered the day she'd dug Bertha's grave, how her thoughts had been similar to what she was thinking now, only much gloomier. "These are just cosmetic, like you said. If a few scars is the price I have to pay to stay true to myself and oppose Team Galactic… then I don't have a problem with it."

She turned around to face Sandra, arms raised to the side and a lopsided smile on her face.

"Besides… they look kinda cool, don't they?"

The woman stared for a moment, dumbfounded. But after a few moments her lips started curving up, shoulders tensing against the sprout of laughter coming from her belly. She let out a low chuckle, covering her mouth with one hand, and stared at her with what could only be tenderness.

"That they do, yes." She smiled back. "I'm… glad you're taking this well, Inyssa. A positive attitude will work wonders toward speeding your recovery."

To tell the truth, Inyssa wasn't feeling very positive at the moment. But… so what if she'd forced herself to say those words, wasn't that what it meant to look on the bright side? She was proud of what she'd done and no one could take that away from her, but until she could also learn not to feel bad about it… where was the harm in slightly faking it?

 _A positive attitude…_  she thought, smiling.  _God, I'm starting to think like Barry._

Despite her best efforts, a slight blush tinted her cheeks. The idea didn't bother her as much as it would've done so a few months ago.

The examination only lasted for a couple more minutes, in which Sandra explained how she should take care of her body after she left. What ointments to use for her scar, what pills to take for her somewhat latent fever, etc. Inyssa was about to leave, hand already on the doorknob, when she heard her speak once more:

"By the way…" The tone of her voice felt less formal as she spoke, "…everything I said to you today was from me as a doctor. But… there is something I'd like to tell you, as a citizen of Celestic."

Inyssa looked over her shoulder, brow furrowed in confusion. As a citizen… what'd she mean by that?

"You know, I was attending the Festival of Spirit with my daughter when… it happened." She gulped, looking down. "The cold in that man's eyes… he passed right by us, you know. I feel confident in saying that I've never been more terrified of anyone in my entire life."

Absentmindedly, she lowered her glasses and placed them on top of her desk. Her eyes set on Inyssa, the same stormy grey as those of Cynthia and every other Celestic citizen she'd seen.

"And yet you and your friend chose to stand up to him, you chose to protect us," she said. "It might not mean much coming from someone like me, but… in the name of my town, my family and myself…thank you."

Inyssa didn't know why those words stunned her. She didn't know why she failed to come up with a response or to even say something back. She'd been thanked before for doing stupid, reckless stuff, right? Why would this be any different?

And yet, as she thought that, the answer was pretty clear in her mind. Before, she'd been too stubborn to accept her actions as anything but selfish and self-serving, because that's what she believed herself to be. Maybe if Sandra had told her these things a month or two ago, she would've dismissed it with a wave and a smile, never to think about it again.

But this time, it was different. Pride sprouted from the depths of her chest, and she couldn't stop herself from smiling widely. Her eyes stung, and for once she didn't feel bad about who she was.

All and all, it was the first time Inyssa really felt like a hero.

"T-thank you too," she muttered back. "And uh… farewell, I guess."

Sandra did something strange; arm still at her side, she brought her left hand over her heart and formed a half-circle with her thumb and index finger. Inyssa felt like she recognized the gesture from somewhere.

"Until we meet again," she said. "May the moon always guide you."

 

* * *

 

 

Barry hated waiting. Despite his mother's best intentions, patience was the one thing she'd never been able to pass on to him. At no point did that become more obvious than at a time like this, being told that he needed to stay in the hospital for at least two more days.

"But daaad!" He whined, his free hand holding onto a sleeping Auri. "Niss is getting discharged tomorrow, and she was more hurt than me!"

Palmer, who walked alongside him through the hospital hallway, smiled apologetically and placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. He carried himself with his typical, contagious energy and exuberance, despite the heavy bags under his eyes.

"A broken arm ain't something you should scoff at," he said. "I know it's frustrating, but sometimes you gotta know when to take a break. If you keep having life-risking adventures every day then you might end up like me!"

Barry chuckled, though without much enthusiasm. Looking down, he was met with the grim sight of the white case currently holding his right arm hostage. The nurse had told him he'd been lucky, that it was a clean fracture and it wouldn't take much to heal, but he was having trouble looking at the bright side despite her encouragement.

To make matters worse, Palmer would be leaving soon, just like Sarah had done a couple days ago. He understood, of course, there were only so many free days they could take from their jobs, especially when they were tasked with stopping Team Galactic, but it still stung a bit.

 _At least I have Niss_ , he thought with a smile. It'd been almost two hours since he'd left the room for an examination, and he was already starting to miss her. He unconsciously hugged Auri closer to him, earning a sleepy snore as a response.

"All right kiddo, here's where I drop you off," Palmer said as they reached the door to their room. "Gotta go make some calls, make sure I haven't been fired yet."

"They'd need to find a better Frontier Brain for that," he smiled. "And I know that's not gonna happen."

Palmer placed a hand on his head and shuffled his hair enthusiastically. The gesture was one Barry had been at the receiving end of a million times, and it felt as reassuring as ever.

"Remember what I told you: your mom and her boss will drop off in the afternoon to talk to you kids. Try not to say anything too irreverent, or she'll end up blaming me," he said with a cheeky smile. "Go off, now. I'll see you later for dinner."

At first his intention was to obey and enter the room, but as his hand hovered over the doorknob, something hard forming on his stomach, he couldn't help but blurt out the question.

"Dad… is mom angry with me?"

Palmer was caught off guard. Not very noticeable, his face simply scrunched up a little, but Barry could feel it. He tapped onto Mesprit's power, turning his eyes golden and searching for a slight change in his father's emotions. He'd kinda gotten the hand of it lately, but he never expected he'd have to use it on him.

Anxiety, panic, apprehension. They hit him like gusts of wind, each one slightly different than the other. After a few moments Palmer managed to reign himself in, and his emotions went silent.

"I… you know it's not like that, kiddo." His smile was forced. "It's just, you know. I'm not good at… these kinda things."

Barry stopped himself from sighing. That was just like him; whenever Palmer didn't feel like discussing a touchy subject, he'd blurt out the same excuse. Barry still loved him, but it was a frustrating habit to deal with.

"It's okay if you gotta think about what to say for a while," said Barry. "But I'm not leaving without an answer."

 _Geez, I'm starting to sound like Niss_ , he thought with a smile.

Palmer rubbed the back of his neck, sighing, "Your mom's… just worried, all right? Between all her work and you two getting caught up in increasingly more dangerous situations…" He struggled to find his words for a moment, "Look, Sarah's not a trainer like us. Our pride, our… wanting to help even if it's not the logical thing to do, she thinks it's all stupid and pointless. And though I'm a Frontier Brain I gotta admit, sometimes she's right."

"We were just trying to do the right thing," he argued. "Does… does she really think we're stupid for that?"

"Sometimes there's a lot of different ways to do the right thing," Palmer shrugged. "You kids chose the high risk, high reward option. I can't blame you for that, honestly I would've done the same, but there were probably better ways to go about it than throwing yourselves at that monster and hoping you'd win."

Barry looked down, the gold in his eyes dissipating into a brown which reflected shame like a mirror. He felt another hand on his shoulder. It felt less reassuring the second time.

"It's nothing against you or your friend. Sarah just… hates that kinda mentality, and the idea of lone heroes in general. To her, heroism is inspiring others to act instead of doing everything yourself." He didn't say it, but there was an implied  _'Even though she's working herself to the bone to keep you out of trouble'_ in his voice.

"I'm… sorry."

"Don't. It's not your fault you're like this, you have most of my genes after all," Palmer smiled. "And I know there's no way in hell I can keep you from trouble, but at least before you do something dangerous remember that we worry, and we love you. All right?"

There was no need for a verbal response; Barry simply turned toward him and let himself be hugged by the tall man, landing his chin on top of his shoulder.

In the back of his mind, something stirred. For a moment he thought it could've been Mesprit waking up, but excitement left him as the legendary Pokemon's voice didn't sound inside his head. It hadn't spoken a single word to him ever since the attack, or more specifically ever since Niss came back with Uxie.

Still, whatever was Mesprit's problem, that was definitely it just now, he could feel it. Was it something he'd done?

Though, just as he began wondering, Palmer had come to the conclusion that so much fatherly wisdom at once was unbecoming of him. As such, he decided to sully his own record just a bit.

"All right, I'll stop hogging your time and let you go back to your  _friend_." He pronounced the last word with a strange, deliberate intonation, something Barry wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't seen Palmer wink as well. "After two hours apart you must be missing her. Why, at your age me and your mom couldn't take our eyes off each other for two seconds!"

Barry's hair felt like it stood up on end, a wave of heat rushing to his cheeks.

"D–DAD!"

 

* * *

 

 

Barry noticed two very different things as he entered the room, gaze locking onto Niss.

First was that he felt relieved. An unconscious reaction, one which he knew would be hard to get rid of. It hadn't even been two weeks since that day, since the moment he'd seen her vanish into the air along with that man. He remembered the fear that had flooded him then, the fear that it'd be the last time he ever saw her. The past few nights, he'd found himself waking up abruptly and in a cold sweat, looking to the side to make sure she was still in the room with him.

Such an experience was not something he could get over so quickly. It'd be some time before the fear of losing her eased a bit.

The second –and most important– thing he noticed was Niss' reaction. The moment he'd opened the door he saw her staring down at the screen of a tablet she held, brow furrowed tightly. However, as soon as she heard the sound her body shook. Eyes going wide, she lowered the tablet to the sheets of her bed and looked up at him like a child who'd been caught doing something inappropriate.

They stared at each other, frozen, for a couple seconds.

"H-hey…" Barry said as he closed the door behind him. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. It's fine."

Her voice sounded strained. She cleared her throat and looked around the room, in that way she did whenever she wanted to avoid staring at someone. Were it not for Auri's soft snores, the room would've been completely silent.

 _Really?_  Barry thought, raising an eyebrow. He didn't even need Mesprit's powers to read her emotions, not that he would've done so without her permission.

"How… was the examination?" she asked after a moment.

"Good. They said it'll probably heal fast," he shrugged. "Also, dad told me that mom and someone else from the Association would come visit in an hour or so."

"Right. Yeah."

Without saying another word she shuffled her feet out from under the blankets and stood up, eyes squinting in pain as she did so. As she turned around to grab something, he caught her wiping part of her face with the sleeve of her sweater. He could've sworn he also heard her sniffling.

"Niss, really. Are you okay?"

She paused, shoulders tensing. Then a moment after she turned around and smiled, "I'm fine, dumbass. Might've caught the sniffles thanks to the cold, but that's it."

Barry narrowed his eyes in that  _'I don't believe you, now stop being an idiot and tell me the truth'_ way that Niss was accustomed to. Unfortunately, she didn't seem to notice. Either that or she intentionally ignored it.

"I think I'll go take a shower," she said. "The spiffier I look when Sarah visits, the sooner she'll believe that I'm feeling better, and I'm aching to get out of here as soon as I can."

She said all that in a fast, hurried tone and left for the showers before Barry had a chance to stop her. Not that he'd do something like that, but it would've been nice to at least have the chance to.

_What the heck is up with her?_

Once again, he expected Mesprit to say something, to crack a joke or make an insensitive comment toward Niss. Once again, he was disappointed. Letting out a sigh of defeat, he approached his bed and placed a sleeping Auri on top of the pillow. The Togepi frowned in her sleep at first, but the softness of her new bed must've counteracted the fact that she was away from her trainer, and soon she was snoring peacefully once more.

"Jeez, you sleep more than Niss," he whispered, smiling. "Guess it's because you're so li–"

His voice drifted as he spotted a familiar glow coming from Niss' bed. Through the thin fabric of her sheets filtered the light of the tablet's screen, flickering on and off in a uniform rhythm. Barry stared at it, an idea forming on his mind.

It was a bad idea; he acknowledged that right out of the gate. Problem was, knowing one of his ideas was terrible seldom kept him from doing it anyway. His entire life stood as proof of it.

_Niss is gonna kill me if she finds out._

With that thought clear in his mind, he grabbed the device from under the sheets and turned it on. The screen came to life, showing him an almost empty  _Home_  panel, most of which consisted of a colorful wallpaper of that one shounen anime Niss loved, with a few apps sprinkled here and there.

None of them seemed opened, but he knew better. He pressed the square button on the lower right corner of the screen, revealing the last app Niss was looking at. It looked like an internet forum of sorts; the top part was covered by a banner which read  _'Sinnoh League Challenge and General Trainer Discussion',_ and the page itself was opened to a specific thread where the users were discussing…

His fingers tightened, making the tablet's sides creak slightly.

_O-oh…_

The name of the thread was  _'Inyssa Dawn/Barry Paladino Official Discussion Post',_ and the messages on the displayed page read as such:

 

* * *

 

 

**VenusAureous**

Not gonna lie, not a big fan of the rookies we're seeing lately. These two have been making a lot of noise but I don't think they're anything to write home about. I saw their fight with Fantina online and it was acceptable at best.

Also I feel like they're kinda soapboaxing and bullshitting us with that whole "Fighting Team Galactic" schtick. Yeah, I'm just gonna believe you coincidentally run into them all the time. Sure.

What are your thoughts on the matter?

**CakeOfLies**

Overrated. Next.

**Arceus-Dakimakura**

Barry: Cute/Badass-looking + cool attitude = win.

Inyssa: Meh. Looks like a tired vampire.

**0bliterat0r**

I like the girl's style I guess, but what's up with that resting bitch face? I haven't seen a single pic of her in which she's smiling.

**AlderFan001**

I don't buy into the Team Galactic stuff either, but I appreciate them trying to at least set an example for other trainers. Also from what I've seen they're actually pretty good and their team is badass and diverse.

0bliterat0r, fuck off. Her appearance has nothing to do with what we were discussing. Besides, grown ass adult criticizing a 17 year old's looks? How pathetic can you be?

**0bliterat0r**

Nice to see your white-knighting isn't reserved just to the good-looking trainers out there.

I'm just telling it like it is, appearance is a big part of being a trainer and a Champion and if you don't have what it takes then you just don't. Tell me with a straight face Sinnoh wouldn't turn into the laughing stock of the continent if we replaced someone as cool and beautiful as Cynthia with… whatever the hell this kid is.

I could accept that Barry kid, but Inyssa… yeah, no.

**ModSakura**

Remember to keep it civil. This is your first warning; I'm not above closing the thread if things get out of hand.

**Punkerst**

I'd be a lot more inclined to defend her if she weren't such an asshole. Any of you hear the rumors of how she acted when she was in Pastoria?

What's there to be angry about? Your parents are paying you to go on a trainer journey and you decide to be a dick to everyone you meet? No wonder people don't like her.

Also yeah, she's not exactly Cynthia levels of pretty, is she?

**AlderFan001**

You guys are unbelievable, seriously. A bunch of adults with too much free time criticizing a kid just because you don't think she's 'hot' enough to be the Champion.

I'm out, this thread is a fucking shithole already.

**UmadBronzong**

Honestly I'd like her to become the Champion just to watch all the nerds rage. It'd be priceless.

 

* * *

 

 

Barry had to put the tablet down before anger forced him to throw it across the room. He could feel his heart beating fast, the blood rushing to the skin of his hands and face, turning them a pale crimson.

His eyes flared golden, and immediately that rage turned into panic. Funny thing about the powers he'd gained from Mesprit: just like he could feel what other people felt, his own emotions were broadcasted to everyone close to him if he didn't control them. He closed his eyes tight and breathed in and out, slowly easing the burning knot which had formed in his stomach. The last thing he needed was for Niss to feel his anger from the other room and figure out what he was doing.

After almost a minute the heat faded, though it didn't mean he was feeling better. Shoulders down, he looked at the tablet on his lap and sighed. Reading more wouldn't make him feel better, it wouldn't change anything, but he couldn't help but be curious. Niss had probably felt the same way, that's why she'd kept reading, why…

_That's why she was crying._

The thought felt like someone had punched him in the stomach. He didn't understand… why would people say stuff like that? Why would they go out of their way to insult Niss when she'd never done anything bad to them? They didn't know her at all and yet they were casting a lot of judgment on her, based on nothing but rumors and appearance.

All appetite left him as he stood up from her bed, leaving the tablet under the sheets like he'd found it. It was just so unfair, he thought. Why couldn't they see how cool and nice and pretty Niss was?

Why couldn't they see her for who she was?

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing Inyssa noticed was that Sarah didn't quite look like herself.

At first she thought it had something to do with her  _'serious face'_. Whenever she was at work, all semblances of a motherly attitude would vanish, replaced with an expression as cold and hard as ice. No smiles, no tenderness, nothing. It was kind of scary, actually, though Inyssa would've never said so out loud.

But no, that wasn't it. She looked… drained, almost. Her cheeks were hollow and the bags under her eyes had grown since the last time she'd seen her. Her usual black suit fit a bit more loosely than usual, too.

Barry seemed to have noticed too, if the guilt and worry on his face were any indication of it. Still, it wouldn't have been polite to point it out, especially when the three of them were waiting for her boss to arrive.

"Ah… finally." Sarah sighed as she looked past the door window. With unsteady hands she opened it and let someone in. "You're late, as usual."

"Yes, yes, I know."

Inyssa didn't know what she expected, but it certainly wasn't for  _that_  person to greet them. The room grew silent as the man closed the door behind him, looking up at them through his violet-shaded spectacles. The weight of his gaze sent a powerful shiver down her spine.

"I apologize for my tardiness." He raised a hand palm up, a tiny smile forming on his lips. His voice was deep, but strangely delicate. "I'm afraid I lost myself in the pages of a book I was reading, and only when I finished it I remembered our appointment."

Sarah raised an eyebrow, "Again?"

"Yes, I know. Books are truly wonderful, are they not?" he said. "What people pour into them, their thoughts and feelings, are able to stretch beyond time and space. I was just reading a collection of essays on the science-fiction genre. There was one quote attributed to a novelist I found remarkable:  _'Though love may lose, kindness wins.'_  I find that philosophical and, at the same time, compassionate."

No one had a reply for that. Sarah was too busy placing a palm against her face, and Inyssa and Barry couldn't quite form words at the moment. They stared at the man with eyes wide as plates.

"Ah… I forgot to introduce myself, didn't I?" He let out a barely audible chuckle, shaking his head. "Apologies. My name is…"

"Lucian Dusk!"

Barry and Inyssa spoke in unison, their screams echoing off the walls and all around the room. The man froze, startled, and behind him Sarah sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose with one hand.

"Kids, please…"

"You didn't tell us an Elite Four would come!" Barry protested, throwing one hand up in the air. "I could've… brushed my hair or something!"

Inyssa placed both hands against her chest, "I am… such a big fan! Oh my god I can't believe you're here!"

" _Well this is… different,"_  she heard Uxie say inside her mind.  _"Your overt excitement is a change of pace from–"_

"I used to follow your career!" She blurted out, interrupting it. "Is it true that when you lived in Kalos you earned the highest title in the Battle Chateau less than a year after becoming a trainer!?"

"Also that you're the second youngest trainer to be an Elite Four!?" Barry added.

"And… and…" Inyssa had to take in a quick breath before continuing, "…is it true that you're only second to the legendary Sabrina when it comes to Psychic-type specialists!?"

They only stopped due to the glare Sarah shot them. Next to her, Lucian blinked a few times before the shadow of a smile formed on his lips.

"Once again, my reputation gets in the way of a formal greeting. How truly pesky it is." He crossed his arms, raising his index finger slightly. "Inyssa Dawn and Barry Paladino, yes? A pleasure."

Despite saying that, he made no effort to shake their hands or greet them any other way.

"All your accusations are true. However, I'm not here as a member of the Elite Four, but as the Chief Manager of the League Association. As such, I would like you to look past my accomplishments as a trainer so we can move on with the subject at hand. I am here to speak to both of you, after all."

As he said that, Sarah made a gesture with her face which could've been mistaken as rolling her eyes if one were looking closely. Inyssa could kind of understand why.

 _Way to try to act humble and praise yourself at the same time_ , she thought.

"Well… whatever you wanna tell us, feel free to," Barry said with a smile. "We're all arms! Wait, I mean… we'll listen to you with open ears! Crap, no…!"

Inyssa bit her lip in an attempt not to laugh, "Y-yeah, what he said."

Lucian didn't speak right away, no, that would've made too much sense. Instead he let himself rest against the piece of wall next to the door, arms crossed and the shine of his spectacles hiding his eyes from view.

 _He is so fucking extra_ , Inyssa realized.  _I guess that explains why younger me liked him so much._

"I'm… aware that you already gave your testimonies to the police, regarding what happened during the Festival of Spirit," he said. "But there's a few questions I'd like answered nonetheless. First of which being; what happened during your confrontation with Team Galactic's leader?"

As he spoke the last word, he raised his index finger once more. The room grew tense.

"Huh? What do you mean what happened?" asked Inyssa, feigning innocence. "You were just talking about the testimony we gave, right? It's all there."

Lucian was probably not a psychic himself –like Sabrina was rumored to be– but still she felt nervous lying to someone who spent so much of his time around Pokemon who could read people's minds. Uxie had assured her that as long as it and Mesprit resided inside them, they would be immune to any kind of psychic influence. Still, it didn't ease her anxiety much.

"I am aware of what the report says," Lucian replied. "But I happen to be doubtful of the veracity of some of your statements."

She tried her best to stay impassive, though she could feel a bead of sweat start to form on her forehead. Why was he asking these questions? Were they in trouble? No, if that were the case then Sarah would've warned them beforehand. So what…?

"According to your testimony, you engaged the leader of Team Galactic in combat in order to protect the Champion. You claimed that, at that moment, she was weakened and unable to move, which made it difficult to escape and look for help. As such, you decided to fight."

Inyssa swallowed, "Y-yeah, that's what we said."

"She almost passed out on us," Barry sighed. "It's because of those… rune thingies she used. We were so worried, we couldn't just leave her to die!"

The boy's performance was the perfect blend of concern and aloofness; Inyssa couldn't help but be surprised.

" _Your friend is a surprisingly good liar,"_  Uxie said.  _"Considering he seems the most earnest of the two of you, I mean."_

 _Good enough to fool Sarah_ , she thought at the sight of the face she made.

Lucian nodded, "They're called lavender runes, but that's neither here nor there. You said she used two of them previous to the fight breaking out? A Barrier and a Teleport one?" He waited until they nodded, then kept talking. "See, that's the part I'm having trouble with. As much as she and I might not get along, I can't help but give her credit where credit is due…"

He paused, raising his head slightly to look at them over his spectacles. A small crease formed on his forehead.

"That woman is the very personification of stubbornness. Using two of those runes would've left her weak and tired, yes, but by no means unable to move or escape." His voice gained a bit of intensity as he said that. "Which leads me to believe you're trying to cover up for her."

Inyssa felt as if someone had slipped cubes of ice into the back of her shirt. Keeping her face from showing any emotions was a lot harder than she'd thought, especially when faced with someone as sharp as Lucian. Now she understood… despite being such accomplished trainers, people like him didn't need Pokemon to possess an intimidating presence. It was a sight to behold, if slightly terrifying.

"Why would we do that?" Barry said after a few moments. "What would we be covering up anyway?"

"Perhaps the fact that, if Cynthia wished to, she could've stopped you two from engaging in such a pointlessly suicidal fight?" replied Lucian. "Which, I'm sure I don't need to remind you, is what any responsible adult would've done in her position."

 _So I was right!_  Inyssa thought, gritting her teeth.  _We're not the ones in trouble, Cynthia is!_

"You two wouldn't be the first trainers to find yourselves in unsavory situations due to Cynthia's shortsightedness. She has taken an interest in you two lately, has she not?"

"Not really," said Inyssa. "We just ran into her a couple of times. Before the festival we didn't even know she was the Champion."

A slight grunt was heard as Lucian hoisted himself to his feet, arms dropping at his side, "That is  _not_  a coincidence. Every single thing that woman does is to further her own plans, and that includes following and grooming trainers like you two, so that one day they might grow strong enough to pose a challenge to her." Inyssa noticed his fingers curling into fists. "On top of all that, she is an adult and thus fully capable of taking blame for her mistakes; you don't need to cover up for her."

 _Jeez, that's one hell of a mood swing_ , Inyssa thought.  _Is there a schism inside the Association or something like that?_

It was clear Lucian's believed his words, and she detected a hint of worry coming from him toward them, but still she couldn't agree. She'd met Cynthia firsthand, she'd heard her speech during the festival. The Champion wasn't the kind of person to take advantage of people. Of that much she was sure.

"We're not going to repeat ourselves," she said. "What's written in our testimony is the truth."

There were a few more things she would've liked to say to him, but for once her self-control kicked in and she realized angering Sarah's boss was probably not the best idea. The last thing she needed was to inconvenience her after all she'd been going through. Still, her image of the famous Lucian wouldn't be the same after today, that was for sure.

The man continued to stare at them for what felt like an eternity, and then lowered his head and sighed. Suddenly, he looked a lot older.

"I suppose I have no proof of the contrary. I'll have to take your word for it.

"Still, I would like to remind you that there's a reason only trainers who've attained all eight badges are legally allowed to help in emergency situations such as this. Unskilled aid is sometimes worse than no aid at all." He passed a hand through his hair, closing his eyes for a moment. "It couldn't be helped during the Veilstone and Celestic incidents, since according to your testimonies you were simply defending yourselves. However, I would implore you to do everything in your power so this doesn't repeat. Otherwise, I will be forced to take measures. Is that clear?"

"Y-yeah," whispered Barry.

"Transparently," said Inyssa.

Lucian's eyes narrowed for a moment, "…Good. I hope you will take my advice to heart, for your own good."

As he said that, the atmosphere in the room relaxed. Inyssa hadn't noticed how tense her body was, how tightened her shoulders and the rest of her muscles had become.

"Now that's taken care of, there's two other small matters I wanted to inform you of," he said. "Firstly, the silver Pokeballs you let us burrow for our investigation will be shortly returned to you. We've also contacted their creator, along with Professor Rowan, so that we may replicate them in masse in case another, similar incident occurs."

She blinked a couple of times, "…Okay."

"Secondly, I've been told your Pokétch and Pokédex were harmed beyond repair thanks to the EMP which was released throughout the town." He paused and looked to the side, his gaze falling on Sarah. "I would like to fix that, at the very least."

On cue, Sarah reached into the depths of her purse and took two small, cardboard boxes out. They were painted white, the image of a familiar device pasted onto one side of it. As she handed one to her, Inyssa felt it reassuringly heavy. A tiny smile formed on her lips.

"Holy crap…" Barry's eyes had gone wide, his mouth forming a tiny  _O_. "They're the latest models!"

"It's purple!" She couldn't help but cry out. "How did you… I didn't think they had Pokétch in this color!"

For the first time that evening, she saw Sarah smile, though the gesture lasted only a second before dissipating back into her serious face. She cleared her throat as she spoke:

"The Association always compensates trainer losses after a tragedy. But… yes, I picked the color myself."

"Consider it a gift of gratitude," added Lucian. "For your efforts to protect the citizens of Celestic."

Inyssa raised an eyebrow, "I thought you were against that."

"I've said so before, haven't I? I always give credit where credit is due." He crossed his arms and looked to the side, a smug smile stretching across his face. "Your actions might've been reckless, but they were also brave. Besides, I can't blame you for wanting to protect others."

 _Would you pick a stance and fucking stick to it?_  She thought, frowning.  _Or do you just love the sound of your own voice?_

"As for your Pokédex, I've already instructed Rowan to give you a new one when the opportunity arises," he said. "The Professor shall stay in Canalave during these next few weeks. I'm guessing you'll travel there too, for your fifth badge?"

Sarah replied before any of them had a chance to:

"Once they're discharged from the hospital, Palmer will fly them toward Floaroma," she explained. "From there they'll travel to Canalave by boat."

Lucian nodded, "Then there should be no problem."

 _Wanna ask for our opinion on the matter maybe?_  Inyssa thought bitterly.  _Not that we'd disagree, but…_

"I believe that is all," Lucian clapped his hands slightly, looking up at them. "…is what I would like to say, but I actually have one more matter to discuss."

_Oh my god._

Luckily, it wasn't what either of them expected. From the pocket of his burgundy coat Lucian retrieved a perfectly flat white envelope, and handed it to Inyssa. She furrowed her brow in confusion, until she looked down and saw what was written on it:

_From: Cynthia Artemis._

_To: Barry Paladino and Inyssa Dawn._

She heard Barry gasp next to her, "S-she left us a letter?"

"Yes, I find it unusual as well," said Lucian. "However, I suppose she didn't want to leave both of you in the dark after disappearing so suddenly." He sighed. "Not that she'd need to do such an unnecessary thing, but that's the kind of woman she is."

They weren't listening to him. All their attention was completely focused on the piece of paper Inyssa had extracted from the envelope. It read as such:

_My dearest Barry and Inyssa,_

_It shames me to my very core that you had to put your lives on the line to save me, when it should've been the opposite. As a Champion, it is my duty and pride to be able to protect my nation, and yet I have failed miserably at doing so._

_I sincerely hope you can forgive my inadequacy. I swear on my name, on my power and on the everlasting moon that I shall do everything I can to make it up to you and stop Cyrus once and for all._

_To this end, and though I've enjoyed your company immensely, I'm afraid I won't be able to meet with you anytime soon. I have a job to do, and no time to waste. Additionally, my peers said I should discourage you from trying to chase Team Galactic and find out what their plan is._

_A shame; I really wanted to show you the wonders of the Celestic ruins. I also heard you're heading toward Canalave soon? Make sure to visit the city's famous library; it really is a wondrous and chaotic trove of secrets._

_In any case, I hope you will continue to chase your goals and reach even greater heights as trainers. Until we meet again,_

_xC.V.A – 2/5/18_

"Huh… bummer," said Barry after he finished reading. "I really wanted an autograph."

Inyssa said nothing, lips pursed tightly. She didn't take her eyes from the letter, reading it over and over to make sure she wasn't mistaken.

" _You noticed it too?"_  asked Uxie.  _" I suppose it is rather heavy handed."_

Lucian cleared his throat to get their attention, "I hope you'll heed her warnings," he said. "I'll be taking my leave now. It was… nice to meet both of you."

They mumbled a half response back as they saw the man exit the room. Were Inyssa not preoccupied with another, more important matter, she would've lamented the fact that one of her childhood idols turned out to be such a stick in the mud.

Sarah, however, didn't leave right away. She stood with her arms behind her back, staring at the two of them as if she had something to say. Her lips parted for a moment, but then she closed them again and sighed.

"I need to go back to work. Stay safe."

Then she left, a grim expression on her face.

_The hell was that about?_

"Well… that was a thing, I guess." She let out a forced chuckle and leaned back against the frame of her bed, letter still in hand. "At least now we have a lead."

She saw the way Barry's worry turned into confusion as his brow slowly furrowed. Adorable, as always.

"Huh? What do you mean a lead?" he asked. "We just got told not to make any more trouble, even the Champion said so."

She shook her head, a sly smile forming on her face, "That's because you weren't paying attention. Here, I'll show you."

Her body unwittingly tilted to the side as Barry sat in the mattress next to her. He stared at her finger as she pointed at a specific part in the letter.

"See here? Cynthia says  _'my peers said I should discourage you from chasing Team Galactic and trying to find out what their plans are'_."

Barry shrugged, "Yeah, what about it?"

"Don't you get it? That's what the people from the Association told her to do, but nowhere in the letter does she actually discourage us!" She grinned, excitement flooding her body. "Also, why would she need to specify that thing about Team Galactic's plans? She's clearly trying to tell us something."

"You… think so?" Barry frowned, clearly not convinced.

"Of course! She must've known someone else would read the letter before it made it to us, so she made the message intentionally unclear." Poking the paper with more strength than necessary, she pointed at another sentence. "Here, why would she mention the ruins and the library? And that line about a trove of secrets… there has to be something in there that'll point us to Team Galactic's plans!"

Barry didn't reply right away, instead choosing to scratch the back of his neck and look away. A noticeable crease had formed on his forehead.

"…You don't believe me?"

He pursed his lips, "It's not that. S' just… I don't know." He sighed. "Do you think we should… keep doing this? I really wanna believe you and keep trying to fight Team Galactic and help people, but what if Lucian and mom were right? What if… we're just not ready for stuff like this?"

Something inside Inyssa's chest tightened as she saw the doubt and shame in his eyes. Without thinking she reached across the space between them and placed a hand on top of his, forming a reassuring smile.

Part of her wanted to tell him he was worrying too much. It would've been the easy road; dismissing his feelings and fears to get what she wanted, like she'd done so a million times before. She knew she could make him cave in eventually, and that thought made her so disgusted with herself she had a hard time not heaving.

 _I promised him I'd change_ , she told herself.  _I can't back out now._

Another part of her wanted to follow his advice and just… give it up. She could certainly use the freedom of not having to worry about Team Galactic anymore. But as soon as she thought that, another memory resurfaced from the depths of her mind. A single phrase, something Shadi had told her long ago:

' _A trainer is someone who uses their power not for their own selfish reasons, but for the good of all.'_

Her hand tightened over Barry's, and her smile grew into a grin full of confidence.

"We can help without putting ourselves in trouble," she told him. "Tell you what; let's go to the ruins and the library and try to find out as much as we can about Team Galactic's goal. Then if we find something, we give the information to Sarah. No more fighting or risking our lives, unless it's absolutely necessary."

Barry's look of shock at her proposal only made her feel more shitty (Had she really been that bad at taking his concerns seriously?) but she pushed past it and kept smiling. Eventually, he turned to look at her and returned the gesture, making her heart jump.

"Yeah… yeah, that can work!" He grinned one of his usual grins, excitement returning to his voice. "Then we can help and still make mom proud! Wow Niss, you're a genius!"

She scratched her cheek, feeling heat rise to her face, "I do what I can."

Her feet landed on the floor as she pushed herself off the bed, determination burning in her eyes. The gesture sent a shockwave of pain from her back throughout her entire body, but she did her best to ignore it. Her fingers curled into fists as she looked down at them. The pale red of her scars was still there, though barely visible.

"I'm sick to my stomach of staying in bed and doing nothing," she said. "As soon as we're discharged, we go to those damn ruins and we learn as much as we can!"

" _I can certainly get behind that,"_  Uxie said in her mind.  _"More knowledge is always a good thing to possess."_

Barry nodded, "I'm not usually one for learning stuff, but this does sound really cool."

"It's decided then; our quest for secrets begins!"

She pointed at the ceiling as she said that, her voice echoing all throughout the room. However, as she did so, she noticed the sleeve of her shirt stretching back toward her forearm. She cringed; it'd been such a long time since she'd worn anything that wasn't her red coat, she'd forgotten how uncomfortable long-sleeved shirts were.

"Though… first we need to do some shopping," she said, frowning. "I need a new coat and scarf; can't go running around the region wanting to be the Champion without the proper wardrobe for it."


	47. Pieces of a Puzzle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the length of this chapter, but there was too much stuff and I couldn't really break it into two. I hope it won't be a problem.

The minutes passed and Barry waited impatiently –had he ever done so otherwise? Probably not–, his foot rapidly tapping against the ceramic tiles of their room. He could hear Niss moving around behind him, the  _swoosh_  and  _swish_  of fabric against fabric almost silencing her hushed whispers.

"Shit, there we go," she finally said after a couple minutes. "All right… you can look now."

Swallowing down his excitement, he turned around as fast as he could and laid eyes on his friend's new outfit.

He was pretty sure he made some sort of sound, though he wasn't sure what kind. As he stood there gawking like an idiot, part of him noticed the slight blush covering Niss' cheeks, along with the way she looked at everything in the room except him.

"Well?" she asked, voice full of anticipation. "What do you think?"

She'd somehow found a way to keep the basics of her old outfit while still re-inventing it in an amazing way,  _that's_  what he thought. Her new coat was the exact same color as the last one, though shorter and more professional looking, not to mention opened in the middle to show her black sweater adorned with grey vine patterns. Her jeans were a bit darker now, and she'd replaced her tall, pink boots with more close-fitting ones, which were brown and looked made of fake-leather. A circle scarf adorned her neck, made of white cotton just like the old one. And, of course, a familiar hat of the same color rested atop her head, bringing the whole outfit together.

There were a lot ways he could describe what he thought of her new look, though almost all of them would've made the situation awkward. He decided to go with the safe –yet still true– option.

"Niss…" he whispered, shaking his head with a smile, "…how are you the coolest girl in the planet?"

Her eyes went wide, and the red in her cheeks exacerbated.

"Stop it, dumbass." She crossed her arms and looked to the side, a tiny smile forming on her lips. "You wanna embarrass me or something? I'll… punch you."

"Hey, you asked," he shrugged. "Seriously though, you look amazing! No one's gonna mess with us if they see you walking around like that!"

She scratched her cheek absentmindedly, still avoiding eye contact, "I guess I could live with that…" There was a pause, after which she swallowed hard and turned to look at him. "Thanks. I was really hoping you'd like it."

"Any time," he said. "Though… I was wondering. Why a red coat?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well… I never saw you as a red kinda person. You really like purple and white and pink, but these coats are the only time I ever see you use red."

Niss looked like she wanted to reply, but then her gaze turned distant and her mouth hung slightly agape. She closed it after a few seconds and gulped, looking down.

"It's… remember that one dumb anime I used to love as a kid?" She asked, forming an embarrassed smile. "The one about that one guy and his brother. I just… always liked the protagonist I guess, because he was also short and irritable and super arrogant but also kind of a cool guy?"

Realization dawned on him, "Oh, I remember! He also had a red coat, didn't he?"

"Yeah, that was the signature part of his outfit," she said. "And ever since I was a kid I always wanted a cool, red coat like that, but Shadi always told me I'd look ridiculous wearing grownup clothes while being a kid. Then… a few years after, I guess I decided to ignore her and just bought one anyway." She rubbed the back of her neck. "That's… that's the whole story."

The silence in the room persisted for a few seconds, until Barry took a few steps forward and surprised Niss by grabbing her arm and squeezing it slightly, a reassuring smile on his face.

"You sure showed her, then," he said. "Seriously Niss, you look incredible."

She only side-glanced at him, but still he felt her appreciation without even needing to use Mesprit's powers. He could've sworn he heard a whispered  _'Thanks'_ , followed by Niss standing up straight and imitating his smile. For a second, it seemed as if she wanted to say something else.

"…Anyway," she cleared her throat. "We should get going. We don't want your mom catching us."

"Yeah! Don't worry, we'll slip out easy," he declared. "She'll never know we even left."

 

* * *

 

 

Sunlight hit Sarah's face in the exact way she hated; that is, at all.

She raised a hand above her head to block it while she walked. Trying to ignore the throbbing of her temples, she moved the Poketch close to her mouth and spoke into it.

"Yes Palmer, I'm sure they sneaked out of the hospital," she said, tone rough and tired. "Though… it's fine, as long as they don't get themselves into trouble. They're getting discharged tomorrow anyway."

Her husband made a sound at the other side of the call, one which –even in her exhausted state– she identified as  _'vaguely bewildered concern'_ , or something like that.

"If you say so…" There was a small pause. "So… you're not going to tell them?"

She shook her head, then remembered Palmer couldn't see her, "I've been working my ass off so that Barry and Inyssa don't have to worry; the last thing I'm doing is tell them you're going in a dangerous mission."

"…Yeah, I guess."

She couldn't help but smile, making the sore muscles on her face hurt slightly. If only the public knew that the legendary Tower Tycoon Palmer was actually just a worried, insecure softie deep down. But… no, that secret was hers alone. One of the only things she'd been able to hold on to after all that had happened.

"I'll try to be back as soon as possible," Palmer assured her. "Just… take care of yourself, okay?"

She blinked a couple times, the town street in front of her slightly blurring, "…Yeah, alright."

"I'm serious. Remember to take a break, eat something and take a little nap." The concern and love in his voice would've moved her if she weren't so dazed by exhaustion. "Don't you dare collapse on me, okay?"

Her smile turned sour on her lips, "Don't worry about me, I'll be okay." She hovered a finger over the screen of the Poketch. "I'll talk to you later. Good luck."

As soon as the call was finished, she approached the side of the street –avoiding a couple dozen people going about their business– and leaned her back against one of the nearby walls. Big gulps of air came in and out as she tried her best to ease the wild throbbing in her head and the soreness in her legs. The world around her shifted out of focus for a moment, before returning with vibrant clarity.

She'd lied. Just keeping up her tone when talking to Palmer had been difficult enough; walking to the other side of town just for her meeting would be almost impossible. Still, it wasn't like she had many options. There was no one else in the Association with her experience; every second she wasn't working toward finding and destroying Team Galactic was time wasted.

She closed her eyes for a moment, and almost fell asleep on her feet. Her body felt ready to give out, ready to…

 _No_ , she grit her teeth, forcing her eyes open. _This is nothing compared to the war. Like he'll I'm gonna collapse here._

With shaking fingers she pushed herself off the wall, legs wobbling as they were forced to bear the weight of her entire body. She breathed deeply for a moment, then raised her chin high and stared forward with a burning gaze.

_Not before I finish this. Not… not before I make sure Barry's safe._

 

* * *

 

 

Despite loving all kinds of adventures, Barry had to admit to himself that those which involved sneaking around were not his forte. He was too tall and awkward to hide anywhere, not to mention he sucked pretty badly at not making noise while he walked.

Niss… well, she was a natural at it. Even all wounded and wearing her new coat which of course was blaze freaking red, she moved like a shadow through the sunlit streets of Celestic and was probably the reason no one had noticed them yet.

"Come on… should be right around this corner," she whispered to herself.

He followed as best he could, ducking slightly as to counteract his height. There wasn't much chance of running into someone they knew, but there would be hell to pay if Sarah realized they'd sneaked out of the hospital a day before they were discharged just to check out the ruins.

"How the heck do you remember where to go?" He asked, trying to keep up with Niss' swift stroll. "This whole city's like a giant maze, and not the fun kind."

"Hm?" She perked up slightly. "Oh, I memorized the map already. The town's structure isn't as complicated as it looks."

There she went, saying stuff like that as if it weren't a big deal at all. He could barely memorize the days of the week, how the heck was he supposed to make his way around a city built like someone smashed a bunch of spirals together and then spun them around a few times?

_We all have our strengths, I guess._

Before he could think anything else, he saw Niss stop abruptly in front of him. She narrowed her eyes and extended her left arm back to stop him.

"It's here."

Slowly and –somewhat– methodically they approached the end of the alleyway and peered over the wall, their eyes struggling to adjust to the sudden sunlight.

The sight was, unfortunately, a familiar one. In front of them stretched an expansive circle of dark, almost polished stone. A few rings rose up from the edges, one of them littered with so much debris, the shape of it was unrecognizable.

 _That's where we fought… that thing_ , he thought, frowning.

At the base laid the strange, house-like wooden structure they'd seen the first time, and behind it rested the side of the mountain which served as the entrance to the Celestic Ruins. And at the sides of the entrance…

"Oh come on..." he whispered.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Niss said next to him.

A couple of guards stood at each side of the entrance, both equally tall and imposing. They looked all around with crossed arms and pronounced frowns, as if daring anyone who passed to make trouble. Not only that, but he noticed the distinct shine of Pokeballs on their belts.

"I don't remember guards being there the last time," he said. "Though… take that with a grain of salt I guess."

Niss shook her head, "I was there too, I'd remember."

He took a step back, gently nibbling on his thumb, "Hmm… maybe they'll let us through if we ask them? We could tell them we're tourists."

"Everyone in town knows who we are," she rebutted. "We have to sneak past them, somehow."

"We could teleport or something."

Niss frowned, "Only if you can do it. I've been practicing all week but I can barely lift a pebble a couple of inches." A sigh escaped her lips. "These powers are bullshit."

Her eyes went wide, in that way they did when Uxie was talking to her. There was a pause, and then she spoke to no one.

"Yeah well, that's just fucking wonderful." She looked over her shoulder at him. "How about you or Kitsune? Think you could get us in without those guys realizing?"

"I… don't know. We might end up teleporting inside the wall." He smiled at the thought, though Niss didn't seem to find it funny. "Not a very safe option."

She nodded, "Then we'll need to distract them. If we release Steven and Razen and have them fight over there…" She pointed at the opposite side of the street. "Then those guys are gonna try to stop them. We can slip in when they're not looking and…"

Her voice trailed off, gaze lost for a moment, and then someone spoke behind them.

"And? What will you do after?"

Niss let out a sound like a Bunnelby grabbed by the ears and shot up. The last thing Barry saw before his vision went momentarily blank was the back of her head quickly approaching his face.

"A-Aagh!" Pain flared on his nose. He covered his face with one hand, his vision swimming.

"Son of a bitch!"

Luckily, their bodies were quick to react despite their astonishment. Both their free hands went to a specific Pokeball on their belts and in unison they turned toward the source of that voice.

Caroline raised an eyebrow, her wrinkly fingers tensing over the head of her cane.

"Is that how you greet an old lady?" she asked, a hint of a smile in her voice. "As confident as I am that I could whoop your butts even if you used Pokemon against me, how about you put those things back where they belong?"

Barry froze, dread sending a shiver through his body. Next to him, Inyssa's face had gone paler than usual, which was saying something.

"W-we're so sorry!" He blurted out immediately. "I… I mean we didn't think…"

Inyssa lowered her Pokeball, "How did you find us?"

A smirk formed on the old lady's lips, barely noticeable amidst all the wrinkles on her face, "Studied a map once and you already think you know every nook and cranny of this town? You don't know half the things you should if what you wanted was to sneak around unnoticed. As the previous Lorekeeper of Celestic, I have eyes all over the place."

He frowned, trying to determine if Caroline was mad at them or simply joking around. The thought of checking with his powers came to mind, but something told him it was a really bad idea to use them on someone like her.

"We were just… you know, looking around," said Niss, not very convincingly. "…Shit, you already heard us talk about distracting those guards, didn't you? Guess I can't fool you."

"No one can, dear," Caroline smiled. "However, I appreciate your efforts nonetheless."

Then, suddenly, her expression turned grim. She seemed to age years in a second alone, as she looked over the alleyway toward the guarded ruins.

"…Cynthia put you to this, didn't she?"

Barry's lips went pale. How the heck…?

"Y-yeah."

"She gave us a way to get answers without getting into trouble," Niss said. "We want to help, even if it's just a little. So, if you could let us see what's inside those ruins…"

"Very well."

Niss froze mid-sentence. She exchanged a look with him, her eyes spelling out  _'Well… that was easy'._

"You'll let us in?" asked Barry.

"I'm not going to do anything, you witless boy." Caroline scoffed, shaking her head slightly. "I am but a humble, old lady who wishes to have a menial talk with those two guards over there. And if, say, any unruly children happened to sneak into the ruins while they're distracted… well, that would certainly be no one's fault, no?"

It might've been just an involuntary facial tic, but he could've sworn Caroline winked at them.

"Alright I take it back," said Niss. "Rowan's been dethroned. Now  _you're_  the coolest old person I've met so far."

"Thank you so much, really," he added.

Caroline shook her head, "I'm not doing you a favor, so you shouldn't thank me for this." Once more her fingers played nervously over the head of her cane. "That darn granddaughter of mine… I've been taking care of her ever since she was a wee lass and not even I know what's going through her head half the time. Knowing her, she probably expected me to run into you here. No… no, she must've known. Because…"

As she muttered, one of her hands went into the pocket of her shawl. She raised a closed fist toward them and slowly opened it, revealing what lay resting on her palm: a faded, golden ring built into a shape which seemed… strangely familiar. Two halves of a broken circle with an X piercing it through the middle.

"…You'll need this, if you want to see what Cynthia wants you to see."

Niss' eyes widened, "Hold on… isn't that like, a religious thing?" She asked. "I remember a giant one of these strapped to the front of a church I saw once. Isn't it supposed to represent the golden ring around Arceus' body or something?"

Caroline raised her head a bit, the darkness of the alleyway casting a strange shadow over her face. Her lips shook for a moment, and she let out a dry, sarcastic chuckle.

"Ha! Trust me, this symbol is older than any surviving religion," she said. "As is this ring, which has been passed from Lorekeeper to Lorekeeper ever since Sinnoh came into being."

"T-then why are you giving it to us!?" Barry asked, the weight of such a responsibility terrifying him.

"Because it's not mine anymore, it's Cynthia's," said Caroline. "And she wanted you two to have it. Of course I'll expect you to return it before you leave the town, but in the meantime… feel free to use it. You'll know how, when the moment comes."

Not quite knowing what to say, Barry reached out and grabbed the ring from the woman's palm. He expected something to happen as his fingers brushed it. A brilliant light, or maybe a rush of power. However, all he felt was the rough and cold surface on his hand.

He exchanged another look with Niss. What the heck were they supposed to do with it? Caroline spoke before he could think of an answer, though.

"Now… my bones are getting quite rattle-y from being still so much." She tilted her head to the side, a deaf crack coming from her neck. "I think I'll head over there to have my chat now."

She walked in between Barry and Niss, giving them nary a side-glance as she headed toward the entrance to the ruins. However, before she'd walked much, she stopped and looked over her shoulder. Her expression was unreadable.

"I trust you'll soon understand the breadth of what you're getting into," she said. "Good luck. You'll need it."

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa had made a very interesting discovery that day, as she thought back to her trial in the Lost Tower just before challenging Fantina. Turned out, she didn't mind caves and encloses spaces as long as they were wide and well illuminated. Unfortunately, the tunnel carving a path through the mountains toward the ruins was neither of those things.

 _It's just a cave; it can't hurt you_ , Inyssa had to constantly remind herself.  _Sure, it's pretty dark and kinda cramped and oh boy that ceiling sure looks like it could fall on top of me any second now…_

Her fingers applied even more pressure on Barry's free arm, though not enough to seriously hurt him. He'd been kind enough to offer himself as a pillar for her to rely on, which she appreciated greatly since at the moment she was having trouble putting one foot in front of the other, not to mention doing so quickly enough for it to be considered walking.

"This place's been here for like, thousands of years," Barry reminded her. "I know we're pretty unlucky, but I don't think it's gonna collapse on us all of a sudden."

She tried to nod, though it came out as a spastic shake of her head, "Y-yeah, you're right. This cave ain't shit, it can't defeat me!"

Defiantly, she raised her chin to look ahead and almost fell from the sudden burst of vertigo. Dark, too fucking dark. She could barely see a few feet in front of them. Her face grew hot and she started to feel lightheaded. W-why was breathing so hard all of a sudden?

Then, like a really obnoxious light in the darkness, she heard Uxie's voice:

" _You know, this might be easier if you could see better."_

She closed her eyes, pressing her lips tightly, "…Yeah, no shit."

"H-hey!" Barry asked, turning to her. "What was that for?"

"Oh, sorry. Speaking to Uxie," she said. "Hey Uxie, I told you to put your voice on speaker when I'm with Barry."

" _And I told you that I have no idea what that means."_

"It means speak to both of us. It's confusing otherwise." She shook her head in irritation, though she welcomed the distraction from the panic. "Anyway, what did you mean about seeing better? We already turned on the flashlights on these things." She raised her palm to show it her Pokétch.

There was a short pause, and she felt a foreign feeling of shame,  _"Of course… I must've forgotten to tell you. If you concentrate and draw upon my power you should be able to enhance your senses enough for this darkness to be inconsequential."_

Inyssa stopped in her tracks, almost making Barry trip by holding his arm so strongly. She took a deep breath and looked over her shoulder.

"You know, for being the guardian of wisdom and memory and all that, you really suck at remembering things."

" _Well... that is…"_  She heard a sigh inside her head.  _"Yes, I've been told."_

Still, she couldn't be that mad at Uxie because she should've remembered it too. Hadn't she heard it from Caroline a few days ago, even?  _'Finally, Uxie sharpened his mind and sight so that all his strikes and arrows would land true…'_ were the exact words she'd used.

Barry gasped in excitement next to her, "Whoa, so Niss can have like… super sight?" His expression brightened at the idea. "Can I do it too!?"

" _I'm afraid not. Even discounting Mesprit's childish vow of silence, you would be unable to as it is an ability only accessible to those who bond with me."_

"Aw, man…"

Inyssa sneered, "Don't complain, you get to read people's emotions." She looked at Uxie again. "So, how do I do it?"

" _That depends on you. Concentrate and try; that's the only advice I can give."_

 _Of course_ , she thought bitterly. Getting a straight answer from Uxie was about as likely as getting it from a rock or a tree. Luckily, such frustrating teaching methods only made her more determined to succeed.

She forced herself to stare straight at the dense darkness of the tunnel, trying to ignore her inner screaming and the loud panic alarm ringing through her mind. Breathing and concentration, that was the key. Having a panic attack and curling on the floor while crying… not so much.

Eventually, it clicked. Her entire body shivered as an invisible current of electricity ran through her skin. The back of her eyes tingled slightly, and she felt the subtle difference as they changed from green to that bright gold.

"Alright, let's see here…"

She pictured the image of a volume slider in her mind and, as slowly as she could, reached for it and turned it slightly clock-wise.

The change was immediate. An explosion of sensations flooded her entire body. She gasped, feeling every muscle in her neck contract with painful, uncomfortable clarity. The cave still looked as dark as it had done before, but now her sight could penetrate through it and notice even the smallest details of the walls and ceilings. The smoothness of the rock, the occasional stubbles of grass breaking through cracks on the ground, every individual speck of dust floating in the air…

But, unfortunately, it wasn't just that. She noticed the distant sound of rushing water, along with the hushed whispers of the guards they'd left behind. She heard Barry's breathing as if inside of her own chest. She felt every bump and pebble under her boots, along with the folds of her clothes against her skin.

Her tongue brushed the roof of her mouth, tasting the hot chocolate she'd drunk a few hours ago. The scent of dust, humidity and moss assaulted her nose like a noxious cloud of pest, only broken up by the lovely aroma of Barry's perfume. As she took a step back, eyes wide in surprise, the big scar on her back flared with a pain intense enough to make her clench her teeth.

" _This particular ability was favored by those of my partners who dabbled in the warrior lifestyle,"_  Uxie explained.  _"As you're nothing of the sort, it's bound to feel somewhat uncomfortable. Still, you'll get used to it with time."_

"I won't," she muttered through her teeth. "This is the last time I'm doing this. It sucks."

Barry's hand brushed her arm, sending an uncomfortably specific shiver throughout her body, "Hey, what's it feel like?" He asked, starry eyed.

"Be grateful you don't know," she replied. "Come on, let's get this over with so I can stop… doing this."

She wasn't sure exchanging a paralyzing phobia for uncomfortable clarity was the way to go about getting over her fears, but it was a tad late to regret her actions now.

The tunnel kept spreading forward and downwards for what felt like ten minutes, though it might've just been her heightened senses messing with her sense of time. However, now she could see they were not simple, empty walls. Every now and then she noticed the faded remains of ancient carvings or drawings stuck to different parts of the rock. None of them looked distinct or recognizable, but they were still pleasant to look at when compared to everything else.

After a couple more minutes, they finally reached the end of the path. The walls widened slightly as they descended into an underground chamber the size of a large living room, almost completely circular except for the flat piece of wall at the opposite side. And on that wall…

"Wow…"

It had been smoothed out to the point it almost looked like glass, and painted on it was a fresco which span the entire length and width of the wall. The shapes and colors had faded somewhat, but even without her enhanced senses Inyssa wouldn't have had trouble recognizing what it depicted.

The triangular, towering shape which covered most of the wall had to be Mt. Coronet, as seen from the base of Celestic. It rose into the sky, piercing a thick sheet of clouds and stopping just before reaching the ceiling. A pulsing red light shone at the top, around which orbited the shapes of three familiar Pokemon, their bodies painted entirely white with the exception of their golden eyes.

She heard Barry let out a gulp of air, "This is…"

"Yeah, I know."

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and extinguished Uxie's power, like blowing on the flame of a candle. Her head swam for a moment as her senses returned to normal. Suddenly, the world around her felt much more muffled and distant.

"It's… the creation of Sinnoh," she spoke, her voice sounding strangely quiet inside her head.

A foreign feeling of uncertainty tickled the back of her mind. Was Uxie worried?

"Oh, yeah! There was a stained glass like this in that church I met Cynthia in."

"There's a bunch of these all over Sinnoh. Though I guess this one's the original." She took a step forward, narrowing her eyes to adjust to the sudden darkness. "That light at the top of Mt. Coronet must be Arceus, creating the lake trio and the entire region with…"

" _That's not how it happened."_

Her muscles tightened at the unusual force behind Uxie's voice.

"What did you say?"

"… _You're wrong about this painting."_  It's tone was rough and resolute as it spoke.  _"Our birth and the creation of Sinnoh are two separate events, often mistaken for one. We were born some time after this land did."_

Barry's eyes went wide, "W-what, really!?"

"But… what about all the stories and stuff?" she asked, brow furrowed. "And what do you mean after? I thought you guys were supposed to be one of the first Pokemon ever."

" _It's a common misconception humans hold,"_  it said.  _"The more powerful or important a legendary Pokemon is, the earlier they're believed to have come into this world."_

"Then… how old are you?" asked Barry.

" _I… am unsure of the exact number of years. However, I know that we came into existence shortly after humans did."_  Inyssa reeled back, blinking in surprise.  _"You were a much different creature at the time."_

Then… what was there before? Inyssa asked herself. Tentatively, she took a step forward and brushed the smooth rock of the wall with a couple fingers. The scars on her arms tickled slightly, and she narrowed her eyes as she studied the image depicted atop the fresco.

Something felt wrong, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Without thinking, she began speaking, "I… don't get it. You and your siblings aren't as old or as strong or as wise as people think you are, so… why does Team Galactic want you so much?" A small crease formed on her forehead. "The more I learn about this, the less fantastic it becomes. You're not gods, you're just a bunch of fuckups who happen to have cool powers and also a terrible family dynamic."

"That's kind of a rude way of putting it…" Barry scratched his cheek. "But… yeah, I was thinking the same. What does that Cyrus guy want with you three anyway?"

Uxie didn't reply immediately. At first Inyssa thought she might've offended it by being so crass, but the resigned tone in its voice as it spoke a few seconds after erased that possibility.

" _I… don't know. I was the first to be captured, but I was never able to learn anything about this plan of his."_  There was a short, significant pause.  _"However… I imagine Mesprit might be able to answer that question if it weren't acting like a child and ignoring us."_

Inyssa quirked an eyebrow up, "What does Mesprit know?"

" _Oh, it knows plenty of things it shouldn't, you can be sure of that."_

Never in her life did she imagine she'd hear Uxie, one of the primordial beings of spirit, talk with a catty, sarcastic tone inside her head. Then again, the unexpected had become kind of the norm lately.

"Look…" She pinched the bridge of her nose, letting out a sigh. "I can't heal your like… millennia-old relationship with your sibling, but maybe I can get you a therapist later if you stop being so goddamn cryptic and just tell us what we fucking want to know already!"

Her scream echoed off the walls for just enough time for her to realize how loud she'd been.

"…Sorry," she whispered, placing a hand against her face. "Didn't mean to yell. It's just… this shit's getting real old."

" _I understand,"_  said Uxie.  _"However, getting mad at us won't solve your problems. We are not omniscient, Inyssa, we can't…"_

" _No, she's right."_

Barry's hand unconsciously closed around her arm, sending an explosion of pain throughout the length of her scars. Her teeth clenched strongly, but her mind was busy with something else. That voice… had it been…?

"Mesprit!" Barry screamed, his expression beaming. "You're alive!"

"… _Wonderful,"_  Uxie whispered.

"Where the hell were you?" she asked, her tone accusatory. "It's been two weeks!"

It was a weird feeling, technically yelling at Barry even though the target of her anger was the creature above him. She narrowed her eyes as she looked up, barely catching a glimpse of the legendary Pokemon's fleeting image. It floated in place much like Uxie did, and though its eyes were open no expression could be seen on its face.

" _Ah… I'd almost forgotten how clingy you humans are."_  It's voice echoed in the empty cavern, a mix of smugness and something she couldn't identify.  _"I decide to nap for… a couple weeks, you said? And already you're acting like you can't live without me. I'm sorry, but you are not entitled to my time."_

She felt Uxie's anger inside her _, "You are not sorry, are you?"_

"… _No, I suppose I'm not."_

The muscles on her arms tightened, a slight red tinting her cheeks. Mesprit was trying to provoke them to say something so it could justify its absence. Was it working? Well… yes, but she wouldn't give it the satisfaction anyway.

Barry sighed, "We were just worried. I thought something happened to you."

"Not to mention you're lying," she said. "Barry told me how scared you were of that Cyrus guy, so much that you abandoned us during the fight. Whatever you were doing, it wasn't napping."

She could neither see nor feel Mesprit's indignation at her words, but she had no problem imagining it. It brought her a strange, bitter satisfaction.

" _I see… so that's what's been keeping you so hushed, Mesprit. I should've expected it."_

"… _You don't know anything, Uxie."_

Uxie let out a dry, sardonic laugh,  _"Don't I? But it all makes sense now. You escaped to the depths of this boy's mind because you were confronted by your biggest fear; one of your mistakes coming back to bite you."_

" _You'd know all about that, wouldn't you!?"_  Mesprit bellowed, its scream exploding throughout the room like a powerful gust of wind _. "Tell me Uxie, how many good people have you sent to their deaths lately you self-important, hypocritical piece of…!"_

"Whoa, whoa!" Barry stepped forward, raising one arm to stop them. "All right, time out! I'm officially declaring a time out! You two need to chill."

Inyssa nodded, still reeling from the force of Mesprit's yell. This was getting them nowhere, she needed to steer back the conversation:

"Here's what we'll do: Uxie, shut up. Mesprit, say what you wanted to say and keep it brief. I'm not in the mood for your bullshit right now."

Okay,  _now_  she felt it. A tremendously powerful wave of rage hit her like a small hurricane, stealing the air from her lungs and threatening to topple her to the ground. She remembered how Mesprit had toyed with her the first time they'd met, how it'd almost killed her with a terrifying ease of mind. She'd clearly gone a step too far just now, and she might be about to pay for it.

But… now she could defend herself. Planting her feet firmly, she summoned the electric force behind her eyes and stared up at Mesprit, gold clashing against gold. She could almost imagine sparks flying between them as she folded her arms and set her jaw, unmoving.

" _How… dare you order me around, you lowly human!?"_  Mesprit bellowed.  _"Do you have any idea who I am!? Any idea what I can do to you!?"_

"Yeah, I do," she replied. "But I'm not gonna give you an ounce of respect until you've earned it. Don't like it? Feel free to exit Barry's body and roam around the region until you're caught by Team Galactic."

" _Y-you…!"_

"Times have changed. We're not as stupid as we used to be and we're not gonna praise the ground you… float on, just because you're a legendary Pokemon. You're stuck in the same shitty boat as us, and until you get your head out of your transparent ass and contribute something to help our situation, you're just going to be a burden. Got it?"

She raised an eyebrow as she pronounced the last two words, which seemed to hang in the air for far longer than they should've. Mesprit said nothing. Uxie's repressed laughter bubbled in her mind. Next to her, Barry whistled.

" _I knew there was a reason I liked you,"_  Uxie whispered.

"… _Yeah, laugh it up you bastard."_  Mesprit's voice came out hushed, a strange mix of bitterness and shame.  _"Stream and stone, talking to one of you Shockeyes is always a waste of time. I could be telling you the sky is blue and you'd still find a way to prove me wrong."_

Barry cocked his head, "Huh? Shockeye?"

" _Hm?"_  Mesprit looked to the side, anger absent from its voice for a moment.  _"…Oh, right. You don't know."_

" _Shockeye is a clandestine, sometimes derogatory term used to refer to humans who have bonded with me,"_  explained Uxie.  _"It originated a couple thousand years ago, though it's use has declined in modern eras, for obvious reasons."_

" _My partners, on the other hand, are called Galehearts,"_ said Mesprit proudly. _"A much better name, if I do say so myself."_

"That is  _so_  cool," Barry whispered, lips curling into an excited smile.

Inyssa furrowed her brow. The names didn't seem to have much to do with the aspects Mesprit and Uxie embodied, Emotion and Wisdom. On the contrary, they'd probably been made in reference to the first people to ever bond with them; how many stories had she read where Synn used his giant fan to control the wind, or Noh called forth thunder to eliminate his enemies? Which meant…

"I'm guessing… the name for people who bond with Azelf has something to do with fire?"

"Why would it…?" Barry's eyes narrowed for a moment, then they shot open as he placed a palm against his forehead. "O-oh… I just got that one."

Her lips pressed tightly, trying to contain laughter. A few seconds passed, and only then did Uxie reply:

" _That is… to be honest, Azelf hasn't bonded with many people ever since…"_  There was a short, awkward pause.  _"…In any case, if one were to hypothetically come up with a name for them, perhaps Flamesoul would work?"_

" _Ugh, that name's terrible,"_  complained Mesprit.  _"Though this is Azelf we're talking about, so I suppose it fits."_

The room stood silent for a few moments, presumably while they all thought what to say next. While the few tidbits of information they'd learnt were pretty interesting, they shed no light on the answer to the question they'd come to the ruins for: what was Team Galactic's plan?

She bobbed her head slightly, "I think we got derailed here. Mesprit, you were going to say something?"

For a moment it looked as if it was debating whether to reply sarcastically or not, though thankfully it must've realized they'd wasted too much time already doing that exact thing. She heard it sigh, then speak:

" _The only reason I came out was to… clarify something. Otherwise Uxie would've explained it itself and would've painted me in a bad light in the process."_ She felt Uxie about to reply, but hushed it with an angry glare.  _"What I wanted to say was… ah, how to put this. There is a… non zero possibility that I might be partly responsible for the creation of Team Galactic."_

Inyssa blinked twice, "…Excuse me?"

" _Sure, consider yourself excused."_

A vein popped up on her forehead.  _I'm gonna find a way to astral project myself so I can punch you in the goddamn face_ , she thought.

"I think what she meant was that we… don't get it," said Barry, scratching his cheek. "What do you mean you're responsible?"

" _Might. I said I might be responsible,"_  Mesprit whispered.  _"You see… that man Cyrus, I might've wronged him in the past and it's possible that's the reason he's after us."_

" _Do you think this might be revenge?"_  asked Uxie, its tone intrigued.  _"It would be justifiable on his end, though I don't see why he'd target me as well."_

"Hey, time out again!" Barry raised his hand high, frowning. "I could really use a whistle for this. Anyway, what are you two talking about?"

She nodded, "What happened between you and Cyrus?"

" _It was Azelf who started it."_  As it spoke, Inyssa could make out a hint of defensiveness in its voice. Whatever Mesprit was about to tell them, it really didn't want to.  _"We hadn't heard from our sibling in ages, and one day out of the blue it tells us we need to meet. And when we arrive at Lake Valor, what do we see? It'd bonded with another human!"_

Inyssa startled for a moment, her eyes going wide. That meant…

Barry asked the question for her, his voice full of disbelief, "A-Azelf bonded with Cyrus?"

" _I know, right!?"_  Mesprit shook its head, letting out a scoff.  _"This bastard spends thousands of years lecturing us about how bonding with humans is pointless and a waste of time, and then it goes and does it anyway! And do you want to know the worst part? The icing on the cake? It came to us because it wanted our help! Can you believe it!?"_

Uxie sighed, " _It… seems this man had encountered Azelf after looking for it for a long time. I don't know how, but he managed to convince our sibling to become his partner, along with… other things."_

" _He must've been one hell of an orator, because as soon as we met with them Azelf asked us to help them in stopping a war!"_

"A w…" Inyssa whispered, dropping her shoulders. "Wait, you mean  _the_  war!? Like… the one that ended twelve years ago?"

" _It would appear so,"_  said Uxie _. "I can't possibly conceive how this man made Azelf care about a human conflict, but…"_

" _We refused, of course!"_

Barry shook his head, "Why!? If you could've helped…"

" _We don't get involved in human wars anymore,"_  said Uxie.  _"Not since the first one."_

Mesprit nodded,  _"Why should we? Every time I wake up from a nap you humans are fighting another pointless war."_

Inyssa could feel the heat running beneath her skin, and did her best not to say anything. On one hand she understood; these were almost timeless beings who'd seen millions die by the passage of time, but still…

 _They could've stopped the war sooner_ , she thought bitterly.  _My dad, Reiko's family… if the lake trio had intervened, maybe they would still be alive…_

"What happened then?" she asked through pursed lips.

" _Well I was furious, of course! To think this bastard was pretending to have a change of heart, telling us about how we could help and change the world for the better… it was sickening."_  Mesprit made a sound which she couldn't categorize as anything else but a mix between a heave and a cough.  _"It looked so happy with its little human, too. After everything that had happened, after Nyss, to see Azelf this way…"_

She expected Uxie to complete the sentence, like it'd done so before, but as the silence stretched and stretched she understood they'd reached the crux of the issue. Whatever came next, Mesprit was the one who needed to say it.

" _I… I might've acted without thinking,"_  it said, a tinge of shame in its voice.  _"I was so angry, I wanted to hurt Azelf but I had no way of doing so. At least… not directly."_ There was a small pause _. "I did it without thinking. I approached the man Azelf had bonded with and… I erased the emotion out of his spirit."_

A moment passed in silence, and then it happened.

The air of the cave vibrated, and Inyssa was hit by a wave of emotion so powerful she was almost knocked off her feet. Her hand unconsciously moved to press against her mouth, disbelief and disgust rising from her stomach like bile, making her feel as if the nerves on her gut were on fire.

Eyes wide, she turned toward Barry. He stood still, looking up at Mesprit with eyes like solid gold. His expression was indescribable.

"I… oh my god…" His face scrunched up in disbelief. "It makes so much sense now. I… I knew I felt something weird from him, but…!"

Her knees wobbled, but she somehow managed to stay on her feet, the world blurring around her. The sensation was like nothing she'd ever felt before, not even when at her most furious; it sapped her will and conscious mind, rendering her unable to even summon her own powers to protect herself.

Before, she'd never understood how something as abstract as emotions could be used as weapons. But… having her friend's anger and contempt exploding outwardly, amplified tens, no, hundreds of times, she finally understood.

"B-Barry…" she whispered, voice forced and hoarse.

"I… can't believe it." The boy grabbed his head, grimacing. "That's awful! Why would you do that to someone!?"

Inyssa clutched her chest, the frenzied beating of her heart almost deafening her, "Barry…"

"Why didn't you tell me before!? If you did that then…"

"BARRY!"

Her scream momentarily startled him out of his rage; just enough for his eyes to shift back to their usual brown. He stared at her, brow furrowed, for a second, until realization dawned on him.

"A-ah… I'm sorry!" Immediately the oppressive aura disappeared, and he approached her with a clear look of guilt. "I didn't mean to do that, I'm so sorry!"

"It's… fine." She closed her eyes, breathing in deeply. Her entire body felt numb. "Just don't do it again."

Another minute, another awkward silence. She was starting to get tired of them, and it only had a little bit to do with the fact her emotions had just been flared to the point of torture.

She bit her lower lip, forcing the pain away by will alone. This had been a pretty shitty mystery hunt so far; the last she needed was to fall apart on everyone when she was needed the most

"It makes sense that Cyrus' emotions were erased," she said, tone tired. "But… I really don't think he's doing all this for revenge. You weren't there when he gave his speech; he's… fighting for something. An ideal or… I don't know, but it's something else besides wanting to get back at you. So if you were worried about that, then don't."

A faint sense of appreciation made its way toward her, but she slapped it away like an annoying mosquito. She wasn't done yet.

"That doesn't mean you're off the hook, though," she frowned. "What you did was disgusting and selfish, and you deserve much worse than what you got."

" _It wasn't just me who…"_

"I'm not done," she cut him off. "You should've paid for actions, but you didn't. Now you can either run and hide like a coward, or you can own up to it and help us make things better."

She expected Barry to say something, to agree with her and try to convince Mesprit to change its attitude. However, as she looked to the side she barely caught the light of his Pokétch lowering to the ground, his expression darkened and impossible to read. Was he still angry? Personally she didn't think erasing someone's emotions was much worse than killing them, but it made sense Barry thought otherwise considering… well, everything about him.

" _Tsk, it's not like me to get chewed on by a human twice in a row,"_  Mesprit whispered to itself.  _"Mark my words, girl; your irreverence will come back to bite you in the end. However… I wonder. Making things better… is such a thing even possible?"_

The question had been rhetorical, she could sense that much. Mesprit stared at nothing, lost in thought, for what felt like an entire minute.

"… _I'll retreat to the boy's mind for now,"_  it said.  _"There is… much I need to think about."_

Inyssa raised an eyebrow, "Are you going to come back this time?"

" _I will. It's clear you don't expect me to take you on your offer, and I've always been fond of proving others wrong. Until then, farewell."_

Its transparent guise dissipated, and for the first time Inyssa felt its presence leaving the room. Barry, however, didn't seem to pay much attention to it. He was still looking away, a hint of bitterness in his expression.

She took his hand and squished it slightly, "We'll talk about it later. Right now, we need to concentrate on finding more clues."

He nodded absentmindedly, "Y-yeah, you're right. Though…" He looked at the painted wall. "Is there anything else to see here? We learned what this painting meant and a lot of other useful stuff."

" _Yes, I was about to voice similar thoughts,"_  said Uxie.  _"I don't believe there's anything else of interest here."_

She gave them a slight shook of the head, "All the information we learned was thanks to Uxie and Mesprit, but Cynthia doesn't know we have them. She expected us to find answers… some  _other_  way."

A sly smile formed on her lips as she said that and, just to complete the gesture, she raised a hand palm up and held it to Barry, expectant.

Seconds passed in silence. Inyssa's smile dropped, replaced with a look of disappointment and a sigh.

"The ring, Barry."

"Oh! Right, right…"

Cheeks flushing, he looked down at one of the pockets of his jeans. His brow furrowed slightly, eyes taking on a slight gold tint, and a moment after the ring shot up as if fired from a gun. It hovered in front of his face for a second, then slowly floated toward Inyssa's open palm.

 _Yeah I get it, you're good at using those powers, now stop showing off_ , is what she wanted to say. However, Barry's arm on the side of that pocket  _was_  broken, and considering how upset he'd looked before she figured a bit of showing off wouldn't hurt anyone.

"All right, let's give this a spin."

She spun the ring between her fingers as if it were a coin, and after taking a deep breath slipped it on one of them.

The fresco began to move, startling her to the point of almost dropping the ring.

"Holy crap!" Barry gasped.

"What the…?"

It wasn't the stone that moved. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the painting itself shifted in its entirety as if it were some kind of video. The clouds surrounding Mt. Coronet's peak moved to the right at breakneck speed, disappearing as soon as they hit the wall and re-appearing on the other side.

Without thinking, Inyssa summoned forth Uxie's power and enhanced her senses again. An explosion of light and sound stunned her for a moment, but it wasn't as disorienting as the first time. Now she could see every tiny detail of the painting as it changed; the vibrant green at the mountain's base, the shining white at its peak, the three siblings of the lake trio and the red light between them, it all disappeared. Mt. Coronet stood now as nothing more than a gigantic slab of rock, stripped of all life.

"What's it doing?" asked Barry with urgency. "Is it… showing us the future or something?"

She shook her head, "The sun's moving from west to east; it's going back in time."

As she said that, it started slowing down. Then, when the sun and clouds were almost completely still, it happened in a flash.

Three balls of light materialized at the peak; however, they were not arranged in a triangle like the lake trio had been. They formed a line; two smaller lights at the side, blue and pink, and a much bigger one in the center, a piercing, perfect white.

Had Inyssa not enhanced her senses, she probably wouldn't have noticed them. They lasted for less than a second and then… nothing.

With time slowed to a crawl, she saw as the land, sky and the entirety of Mt. Coronet dissipated into nothingness. An opaque, uniform sheet of black swallowed the entirety of the wall and, after what felt like an entire minute, writing appeared in the middle. The letters were painted a shining white and contrasted immensely with the rest of the wall.

It took her a moment to realize where she'd seen those letters before. Eyes going wide, she turned to look at Barry and found him mirroring her expression.

He gulped, "You think…?"

"Let's try it out."

They looked at the wall once more and flared their eyes in unison. The shapes of the letters didn't change, but suddenly she could understand their meaning, like pieces of a puzzle fitting together. Muttering under her breath, she read the inscription aloud:

_In the beginning, there was only a churning turmoil of chaos._

_At the heart of nothing, a light shone, giving rise to the Original one._

_From its power, two beings the Original One did make._

_Time started to spin. Space began to expand._

_From its soul, three living things the Original One did make._

…

_The two beings wished, and from them, matter came to be._

_The three living things wished, and from them, spirit came to be._

_The world created, the Original One hid itself in the Hall of Origin._

_Its door was locked. Its key was hidden. Its power was shattered into seventeen shards._

_Its duty fulfilled, the Original one took to unyielding sleep._

About a million thoughts and question began to buzz inside her mind as soon as she finished reading. However, there was one which buzzed the loudest.

 _One of the lines is missing_ , she thought, frowning.  _Someone intentionally erased it._

While she debated which of the many, many inquiries inside her head she'd voice, she heard Uxie speak behind them.

" _You know, fun fact about that inscription…"_

Both her and Barry looked over their shoulders. While it wasn't reflected on its transparent body, she could feel a cheeky smile coming from the legendary Pokemon.

"… _it is actually a poem. And, strangely enough, it rhymes in its original language."_

 

* * *

 

 

Half an hour later, the sun began to set as they made their way back from the ruins.

Inyssa wouldn't have realized if she hadn't looked up at the sky. Somehow, the dark stone used to construct most of the houses in Celestic had the strange quality of retaining an impressive amount of heat and sunlight even as night approached. Still, even such a cool phenomena couldn't keep her attention in lieu of what they'd seen at the cave.

It'd been a long time since she'd encountered such an interesting and complicated puzzle. She rejoiced at the feeling of her mind working at full capacity to try and unravel it, even if she would've never said so out loud.

"So…" Barry scratched his head, trying to summarize what she'd been saying, "…there were two other Pokemon before the lake trio, and they embody time and space?"

"It's the most likely explanation," she said. "The white light in the middle has to be Arceus, though I don't know why they call it the  _Original One_  in that inscription." She furrowed her brow, deep in thought. "Though… I wonder about that line that was erased. If we follow the narrative structure of the poem, that line should talk about what was the original duty of the lake trio, like it did so for the other two Pokemon."

"Isn't their whole deal that they created the human spirit? Wouldn't it be about that?"

"Why would they erase it if that were it?" she shook her head. "It has to be something else. Uxie, do you know anything about that?"

" _I'm afraid I do not,"_  it said.  _"I am not aware of any special duty the Original One could've given us, besides being the guardians of Spirit."_

She clicked her tongue, "Then there's still something we're missing."

Not only that, she thought. That line about the seventeen shards… she was starting to get an idea as to what they referred.

"Still, we learned so much cool stuff!" Barry bumped his shoulder against hers, smiling. She could tell what he'd said didn't include the bit about what Mesprit had done, though. "With your super brain I'm sure we're gonna figure out something big in no time!"

"…Super brain?" she raised an eyebrow, trying to contain a smile. "Anyway, let's hope so. With some luck the rest of the info we need will be in Canalave's library."

By the time they reached the hospital, the sun was barely a sliver of light in the horizon. They stood a street away from the entrance, looked around to make sure neither Sarah nor Palmer were close to catch them, and then finally headed inside.

"We should start packing," said Barry as he opened the door. "Dad said he wanted us up early tomorrow to take us to Floaroma."

She nodded absentmindedly, "You go ahead, I have to go get Shadi's Pokeball from the nursery."

The Kricketot had taken much more damage than any of their other Pokemon during their fight with Cyrus, and as such needed to stay in intensive care for almost two weeks. Inyssa felt a clump on her throat as she remembered the state she'd been in the last time she'd seen her.

"Oh… okay," said Barry, concern written all over his face. "Good luck, then."

 

* * *

 

 

Some part of Inyssa –the one she'd been trying to bury into the darkest recesses of her mind for a while now– knew her good mood at their discoveries couldn't last forever. Something, or someone, would eventually come to smash it to pieces.

As it had happened a million times before. As it was happening right now, with her standing across the counter of Celestic's makeshift Pokemon nursery, fingers pressing strongly against Shadi's Pokeball.

"You… you told me she'd be okay!"

Fear permeated her voice like a thick, corrosive poison. The nurse flinched and took a step back, hands going to her chest for a moment. This wasn't right, the logical part of her mind told her. The woman wasn't responsible, she was simply the messenger. And still…

Uxie said something behind her, reprimand in its tone. She didn't care.

The nurse swallowed before speaking, "Please… let me explain. I know this can be hard…"

"What… happened." Inyssa said, gritting her teeth. "I… I'm here waiting for two goddamn weeks because you told me her recovery would take some time and… and now you tell me…"

She couldn't finish the sentence, her throat blocked by something hard and unpleasant. Her eyes began to sting.

"It's… it's not simple. We thought you already knew, we thought the nurses from other Pokemon Centers would've warned you already…"

"Warned me about what!?"

"I… here. Please, sit down so I can explain."

She did so reluctantly, the stiff wood of the chair hurting her back as she leaned against it. The few lights adorning the room were pale and sickly, and the scent of antiseptics hung in the air like a cloud of pest, one she'd gotten familiar to over the course of the past two weeks. It was a necessary building, but it lacked the warmth and familiarity of a real Pokemon Center.

"I need you to listen to me, okay?" the nurse asked. Inyssa nodded weakly, her lips thin and pale. "Your Kricketot is… technically fine. We've taken care of all her wounds and as far as her physical condition is concerned, she's already made a full recovery."

"Then what's the problem?"

"It's… it's not an easy thing to bring up. You might not be aware…" A crease of worry formed on the woman's forehead. "Tell me, how much do you know about bug Pokemon?"

Inyssa frowned, "As much as any other type, I guess? What does this have to do with Shadi?"

"Well, she is one, for starters. A very powerful and well trained one, but a bug type nonetheless." The woman looked down, fingers playing with the fabric of her uniform. "I'll just… come out and ask. Are you aware of the average lifespan of a bug Pokemon?"

Her breathing froze. Inside her ribcage, it felt like cold, sharp fingers grabbed onto her heart.

"Y-yeah. I know."

"I figured that was the case," the nurse said, sighing. "And I wanted to let you know that we made some tests on your Kricketune to determine how old she is. That's… when we noticed."

_No…_

Her voice came out forced and high pitched, "Noticed what?"

"Well, according to the results of the test she should have… most of her life ahead of her." Inyssa noticed the way she'd avoided mentioning a concrete number of years. "However, the state of her body tells a very different story."

_No, no, no…_

"After taking a closer look, we realized she looks a lot more mature than we expected."

_Please stop…_

"Not only that, but the muscles on her wings, legs and arms were incredibly deteriorated for someone as young as her."

_Shut up! Just shut up!_

"The only explanation we can think of is that her body can't keep up with the… amount of power your training has led her to develop."

_I-it's not my fault, please…_

Inyssa took a moment to breathe, shaking off the voice booming at the back of her head by willpower alone. Her muscles were tightened painfully, and she could feel sweat forming on her neck and forehead, but still she looked up and answered.

"I… don't get it," she said. "I trained her the same way I trained all my other Pokemon. There's nothing different about her…"

"Listen to me."

She closed her mouth, jaw set in fear. The nurse sighed and rubbed her eyes before continuing:

"It's… very nice of you to want to give that Kricketot a chance. Whether you did it out of a sincere appreciation for her or just because you wanted to prove you could, it doesn't matter." She paused, breathing in. "But that doesn't change the fact that she's still just a bug Pokemon. Her body can't handle the level of combat you've been putting her through."

"B-but what… what about Aaron!?" She asked, tone desperate. "He's part of the Elite Four and he specializes in bug Pokemon, doesn't he!?"

"That's different. Most of his Pokemon have a secondary type that counteracts the Bug type's brittleness, and those who don't he uses mostly for support," she said. "He's only gotten so far because he understands his partners' limits."

Inyssa bit her lip, shaking her head strongly, "No, Pokemon have no limits! Every… every one of them can beat another as long as their trainer is skilled enough!"

"It's very nice of you to want to believe that." The nurse reached across the table and placed a hand on hers, forming an apologetic smile. "But there are some things you can't achieve with willpower alone."

Her gaze moved down to her right hand, still firmly gripping Shadi's Pokeball. Had… had she known? All this time, had she known that she was being pushed way past her limit? And even still, she kept trying day after day, just for her.

_Just for me…_

"I… don't get it," she said, choked up. "There were other trainers with a Kricketot, I saw them during my journey. What about them?"

The nurse shifted in her seat, looking down, "Most Kricketot are caught for artistic purposes, since they can use their scythes to play music like a violin. They're often sought for by rich people, to keep as pets." There was a pause. "As for trainers, I'm guessing most of them release their Kricketot once they've… outlived their usefulness."

It was a miracle she didn't heave as soon as she heard that. That familiar, pulsing heat began to grow from her chest outwards, tinting her cheeks red.

 _So she really was abandoned_ , she thought, furious.  _That night when I found her outside that Pokemon Center…_

"I... I promised her I'd make her strong." Her voice came out more like a plea than anything else. "I promised her she'd be there when I became the Champion. She's my strongest Pokemon!

"And I'm sure she's very proud of that. Your Kricketot has probably experienced a level of combat that no other member of her species has. She's pushed past her limit time and time again, but… she can't keep doing it for long." Her brow furrowed, expression turning serious. "I'm not telling you to get rid of her, but you need to find another way for her to fight or I doubt she'll survive to see the end of this year."

Inyssa didn't reply, gaze still set on Shadi's Pokeball. In the back of her mind, she heard herself speaking a familiar phrase:

_There's not a single Pokemon I can't achieve victory with!_

How false it sounded now, how mocking. She remembered back to when she was still in trainer school, the excited chatter of her classmates about what Pokemon they wanted to catch when they finally went on their journey. What kid hadn't dreamed of taming a Charizard or a Tyranitar? What kid could deny the appeal of such terrifying beasts; the very epitome of power itself?

Well… she had. And now she was paying for it.

But still, she couldn't go back on a promise, especially not one she'd made to her closest partner. Even if it was impossible, even if she had to think day and night without a minute's sleep, she  _would_  find a way for Shadi to fight without hurting herself. It's the least she owed her.

She… no, they would prove everyone wrong. Her fingers curled strongly against Shadi's Pokeball, and she smiled.

 _Someday, you'll stand at the top with me_ , she thought.  _And no one will be able to look down on us._

"I'll do it." She looked up at the nurse, resolute. "I promise I'll find a way."


	48. Pieces of a Heart

It was a funny thing, Metchi thought, not having enough money to pay the people who'd just saved her life. Almost enough to make her sick to her stomach, which she was, though for a completely different reason than her ill-timed conscience sprouts.

The shape of the makeshift hospital grew smaller behind her as she made her way toward Pastoria's northern border, looking to the side every few seconds to make sure no one was following her. Not that it would've been hard, considering she was almost comatose and there were two incredibly distinct Pokemon walking behind her.

Shadows fell over them as they passed the threshold of the city's borders, venturing onto the wild flora of Pastoria's outskirts. Metchi tried to be careful as she walked –as much as she could with her head throbbing anyway–, lest she trip and fell on top of any of the myriad of colorful and possibly poisonous plants littering the ground all over.

"Try to look around," she said, voice barely a whisper. "See if you find a stream or a clean spot to rest."

She could feel two pair of eyes on her back, half judging and half concerned. The sound of crinkling leaves became louder as Lyserg hurried toward Metchi and placed her head on top of the girl's shoulder. A low whine reverberated through her throat.

Metchi bit her lip, "I can walk by myself, thanks. Besides, there's nowhere I need to fly to yet," she spat out, tone bitter. "We'll stay here for a while. Try to recover our strength."

"Free…" she heard Monferno scoff behind her. As she looked over her shoulder, she found him with his arms crossed, glaring at her.

"Shut up," she scoffed back. "I told you to stop following me."

He didn't move an inch. There was no anger in his eyes, just disappointment and expectation.

"Stop staring at me!" She bellowed, turning toward him with her hands balled up into fists. "You paid me back already, so just go back to your trainer! I don't want you around!"

She started walking away before she even finished speaking. Her eyes began to sting, and her voice had wavered for a moment, almost cracking.

Luckily, she found a distraction pretty fast. Less than a stone throw's away she noticed the gleam of water past a tall berry bush, and headed there without delay. She made her way through it, staining what was left of her clothes in sticky berry juice, and set foot on the other side, barely a few inches from a large pond of crystalline water. It didn't seem big enough to be considered a lake –about twice her height in width–, but it would suffice for the time being.

A smile teased at the edges of her lips. At least she had something to drink. After having survived being punched, stabbed, burnt, slashed, poisoned and almost exploded, dehydration would have been like a pretty lame way to go.

She kneeled just before the edge and dove both hands into the water, its cold sending a blissful chill throughout her arms. Behind her, she still felt the two Pokemon's glares on her back.

"Come drink," she said. "The smudges of dirt near the shore mean other Pokemon come here, so the water's safe."

Cupping water between her hands, she splashed her face gently and rubbed off the disgusting scent of antiseptics off it. The breath she took right after, as droplets fell down her chin and into the dirt below, was so pleasantly cool and deep she almost fell asleep on her knees. Dear Mew she needed a nap.

The ripples on the surface of the pond ceased after a few seconds, reflecting Metchi's face with uncomfortable clarity as she parted her eyelids open. The picture was almost familiar enough to be comforting. She read every scar, every crease and wrinkle like the lines of her own palm, like the withered pages of her favorite old book.

However… there was an oddity about the reflection. Something that didn't fit with the rest of her face, something that didn't belong.

She scurried to her feet before her mind had a chance to ponder more on the subject. As she regained her balance and turned around, she found the Monferno and Tropius still staring at her, their gazes unrelenting.

A sigh escaped her lips, prickles of anger washing over her body.

"What do you want me to say?" She threw her hands up slightly, letting them fall again on her hips. "I fucked up, okay? I had my one chance to be a hero and I blew it. I can't take on Team Galactic anymore, not without Azelf anyway." She spat the name out as if it were a mouthful of poison. "I'll just… deliver these blueprints to Rowan and pray the Association can do something about it."

Looking away was all she could do at the looks they gave her. What did they think, that she was okay with all this? That she was stoked because she finally got a vacation from trying to save the world? That had been her life, what she looked forward to every time she woke up. Now that Azelf was gone… what was left for her to do?

What was left of the hero she'd been trying to become? Nothing, except for a few memories. Nothing, except…

One last time, she looked over her shoulder. Her reflection stared back, almost defiantly, though it was probably just the oddity which had been following her ever since she'd woken up.

 _Why?_  She asked no one, a deep sadness washing over her.  _If Azelf's gone, then why are they still…?_

The reflection blinked as she did, perfectly mirroring the golden light in her eyes.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa didn't mean to make a big, dramatic entrance to Floaroma, but it was kind of hard to avoid while dropping in the middle of the town square atop a gigantic dragon Pokemon.

Okay, she might have landed with a bit of a flare, flipping her hair to the side and shoving her hands into her pockets, staring back at the surprised citizens with an aloof, nonplussed look that had definitely been rehearsed once or twice. However, the convenient gust of wind as Palmer's Salamance flapped his wings –making the landing infinitely cooler– had been entirely accidental, though appreciated.

Barry landed next to her with a deaf thump, much less graciously than she had. He stood up and smiled, his disheveled mess of blond hair completely spiked upwards thanks to the supersonic speeds at which they had just traveled.

"I wanna do that again," he said, voice hoarse and eyes wide open.

She smiled back and bumped her shoulder against his, "Cool your jets. The last thing we need is for you to become an adrenaline junkie, on top of being already addicted to sugar."

"Man, I'd be freaking unstoppable." He sighed dreamily, gaze lost someplace else.

They waved their goodbyes to Palmer as he took to the skies once more. While Barry stared at his and Salamance's ever shrinking silhouettes –a wistful look on his face–, Inyssa looked around a bit.

Their entrance seemed to have been already categorized as 'one of those things', since most people who'd looked up curious as they landed now went about their day with the characteristic carefree nature she remembered from her last visit. The town itself –or at least the square she was in and the surrounding hills– hadn't changed much, though there was a noticeable decrease in summer attires all around. Floaroma might've been one of the region's warmer towns, but that meant nothing in the face of a Sinnohan winter. If there was one thing every person in the region knew, it was that once the cold came it would strike indiscriminately, no matter where one lived.

Inyssa closed her eyes for a moment and took in a deep breath, her nose assaulted by a myriad of sweet, musky aromas. The flower plantations were a few miles away, but the wind was good at carrying their scent. Last time she'd been in Floaroma the smell had been a tad too overwhelming for her, but now, mixed with the clean, cold air, she could almost begin to enjoy it.

Almost, because as much as she would have loved to, she hadn't forgotten the main reason for their visit.

She sighed as she opened her eyes again. Almost shuffling her feet, she looked all around the square while trying to locate someone. She said she would be there as soon as they arrived, right? What was taking her so l–

"Niss! Barry!"

… _Speak of the devil._

The voice came from behind them, amidst the crowd of people gathered in front of one of the many cafés littering the town square. They turned to see Johanna trot toward them, a crooked yet relieved smile on her face.

Inyssa stared, waiting for any kind of reaction within her. However, no anger nor pity nor any kind of emotion came to answer, and she didn't know whether to find that relieving or upsetting.

"Hi, Miss Dawn!" Barry waved.

"Hey, mom."

They exchanged a hug and a kiss on the cheek, gestures which, again, Inyssa failed to be irritated by. She even smiled back, for how much that was worth.

"It's so nice to see you two," Johanna whispered, out of breath but still beaming. "How are y– I mean, how was your flight?"

She didn't fail to notice the question she had almost asked, nor the way her gaze kept darting toward Inyssa's covered arms. Still trying to give her space, still trying to avoid overstepping her boundaries. She didn't know why, but the thought made her uncomfortable.

Her mother looked… better, if she was any good at judging these sort of things. Her skin had gained back a smidge of color, and now the only wrinkles visible on her face were those caused by age. The bags under her eyes had shrank significantly, too. All in all, she seemed to be keeping her promise of staying clean.

 _For now_ , a bitter part of her said. She shook her head and pushed that voice back to the depths of her mind.

"…and that's why my hair looks kinda anime right now," Barry finished explaining. "It was really, really cool."

"Well, I'm glad you managed to enjoy yourselves," said Johanna, forming a nervous smile. "You two deserve a break after… everything that's happened." Inyssa noticed the woman's hands fidgeting, her fingers curling around each other. "Speaking of which, Niss, I adore your new outfit! The mix of styles and colors gives you a somewhat beatnik, almost kalosian vibe, don't you think?"

"Uh… sure." Inyssa squinted, having no idea what any of that meant. "I just picked whatever looked cool."

Johanna stroked her chin, smiling to herself. "As I told you before, comfort begets style. Though…" She leaned forward on the ball of her feet, squinting at Inyssa. "While the colors of your outfit are mostly complementary, I can't help but feel that the pink of your hat looks somewhat out of place. Have you considered getting one that's completely white or…?"

"Not getting rid of the hat, mom," she said, tone irritated.

"…Yes, of course." Johanna gulped, looking almost disappointed. "Anyway… I know it's not quite lunch time and it's a bit too late for breakfast, but would you like to get something to drink back at the Pokemon Center?"

"Something to drink sounds good," Barry nodded, his smile a bit too forced. "How about it, Niss? You want some tea?"

"No more cheap tea for me. It smells great but I'm always disappointed by the taste," she said. "Anyway, you two can go on ahead and I'll join you later for lunch. There's something I gotta do first."

As a token of appreciation, she decided to ignore the uncomfortable silence following her statement, along with the concerned looks of both Barry and her mother, set on her.

"Darl… I mean Niss, are you sure you want to do that now?" Johanna's lips pursed as she spoke, forming a bright red line across her face. "I don't mean to pry, it's just…"

"It's fine," she said. "I'd just like to get it over with as soon as I can, so I don't have to be thinking about it all day."

Johanna froze for a moment, then nodded, "Y-yes, of course. We… we'll be waiting for you with something tasty for lunch, then. I'll go ahead and order."

"Thanks," she replied. Then, a couple seconds after she added, "Uh… it's, really nice to see you again, too."

Johanna shot her a tiny, appreciative smile, then turned and began walking toward where she remembered the Pokemon Center was. She was left alone with Barry, who placed a hand on her shoulder, reassuringly.

"Good luck with… that." He smiled. "Anything you'd like me to order for lunch?"

She wasn't paying much attention, though she did feel the uncomfortable rumble in her stomach. Maybe skipping dinner last night had not been as wise a decision as she had believed it to be.

Besides, looking at what she would be doing for the next hour… maybe some food would be nice.

"Anything with lots of meat and cheese and carbs," she said. "And tomatoes. No lettuce, though."

"So… a burger?"

"…Yeah. I could go for a burger. Or three." She shrugged. "Anyway, see you later."

The feeling of Barry's concerned gaze set on her back did not leave her until almost a minute after she'd started walking away, heading directly toward the northern flower fields of Floaroma.

 

* * *

 

 

Inyssa was not able to find Bertha's grave.

She stood completely still, powerful gusts of wind dancing around her, carrying a myriad of sweet and musky scents which made her head swim a little. She welcomed the dizziness. It helped distract her from the heartbreaking truth that, after making such a big deal out of coming back to Floaroma to pay her respects to Bertha, she could not for the life of her remember where she'd buried her.

Slowly she craned her neck to the sides, taking in the sight. The nurse had been right; the flowerbeds had changed a lot ever since the last time she had visited. No matter where she looked, a more vibrant and explosive field of colors met her gaze, almost an eyesore really. And since she stood atop the town's hill, the contrast as the colorful horizon met with the bare, empty blue of the sky was hard to ignore.

It would have been a beautiful sight, in other circumstances. Right now, it simply felt as if the world were making fun of her.

 _Probably should've marked the grave with something other than a flower_ , she thought.  _Kind of a bad idea, in retrospect._

" _I don't wish to interrupt."_  Uxie's voice sprouted from the depths of Inyssa's mind, startling her.  _"But I might be able to help you."_

Inyssa hurried to clear her throat, while rubbing her eyelids on the fabric of her sleeve.

"This is a private moment," she said. "I'd like to be alone."

" _I understand. However, remember that I have access to your memories and, as such, would be able to locate the place you're looking for without trouble."_

Inyssa bit her lower lip. Part of her wanted to refuse out of pride alone; she would find the grave herself, and if she couldn't then she would live with the shame and anger, wearing them as punishment. However…

She was also tired, and sad and just not feeling great overall. Maybe getting help just once wouldn't hurt, maybe she could leave the shame and anger for another day and instead focus on paying respects to poor Bertha. Maybe… maybe she didn't feel like feeling like shit.

"Sure. Go ahead."

Nothing happened at first. The only sound besides that of the wind was Uxie's voice as it muttered to itself, probably busy digging through her memories, trying to find the right one. Any other day she might have felt horrified by the invasion of privacy, but now she couldn't care less.

" _Ah, here we go. Walk northeast for a minute or so and you should find it. I'll guide you."_

Inyssa did as she was told, too numb to even try arguing. She walked slightly downhill at a brisk pace, zigzagging as to not accidentally step on any flowers. As they approached what looked like a mini-valley in between two of the small hills, a memory teased itself from the edges of her mind, faintly. She'd been here before.

" _Hopefully you will be able to search your own memories in the future, along with those of others and the environment itself,"_  said Uxie.  _"All you need is practice, and the will to improve. Once you get accustomed to my abilities you will…"_

"Uxie."

There was a beat of silence.  _"Yes?"_

"Not now, okay?" She looked over her shoulder at its transparent body, her expression blank. "I'm up for talking about this stuff later. But I'd like to be alone now."

"… _Of course. I apologize."_

She nodded absentmindedly, then turned again toward the flower field. After a few seconds of looking she noticed a rectangular patch which looked slightly more elevated than the rest of the soil around it, covered in smaller, younger flowers than most. And in the very center, standing out like a sore thumb, was the one Barry had helped her place on top of the grave. Half red and half pink, the six petals of the gracidea moved gently with the wind, as if cradled by it.

Almost a minute passed before she came back to reality, her gaze previously distant and the green of her eyes faded. Slowly, and gritting her teeth at the pain on her back, she lowered herself and kneeled in front of the grave, placing her palms on top of her thighs. She stared blankly at the gracidea, the usual chaos inside her mind strangely quiet and calm.

With nothing else to do, she wondered. Should she have brought something? The normal thing –at least as far as she knew– was to bring a bouquet of flowers to the grave, but she couldn't begin to imagine where she would get one more beautiful than the flowers all around her. Gracideas didn't exactly sprouted from trees… or at least she didn't think so. If they did, then they were probably very rare trees.

Well… what else could she offer? Maybe her words? What could she possibly say? All options were…

Inyssa paused, eyes widening, then sighed as she looked over her shoulder.

"You're still here."

A couple seconds passed, and then Uxie spoke.  _"Evidently."_

"Why? I told you to..." Her voice trailed off, and she sighed. She didn't have the energy to argue. "Whatever, do what you want. Not like I'm making much progress here alone anyway."

" _You seem to be doing well, considering the situation,"_ said Uxie. _"I may not understand most human customs, but the act of mourning for the dead is one which I'm quite familiar with. From experience, I've found that a bit of company tends to help, even if it's not the company the mourner expects."_

Inyssa sniffled, blinking rapidly. "Is that what I'm doing? Mourning?"

" _Are you not?"_

She thought about it for a moment. "I don't know."

A few seconds passed in silence. Consecutive gusts of wind hit her on the back, slightly ruffling her hair and making a wave on the landscape as it pushed the rows of flowers before her. The already strong scent became even heavier, and she couldn't help scrunching up her nose. Her clothes would probably smell of flowers for the next few weeks.

She took a deep breath, scratched her cheek and –before she even registered what she was doing– began to speak.

"Wanna know what's the worst part?" She noticed the way her voice was cracking, but decided to ignore it along with everything else. "Like, about all this."

Despite not being able to see Uxie, she felt it raise an eyebrow.  _"Hm?"_

"I don't… feel as bad as I was expecting to. I can't even bring myself to cry." She let out a low, heavy chuckle, shaking her head. "Isn't that fucked up?"

" _Is it?"_

"Yeah, it is," she said. "And I hadn't considered it until now but… it's been a while since I thought about what happened here in Floaroma, and about Bertha. There's been so much crazy stuff ever since. And now that I'm here, it feels like it happened a lifetime ago."

" _That is not surprising. What you have just described is the process of grieving,"_  Uxie explained.  _"From my experience, time heals all wounds. Some sooner than later, though it depends on their gravity."_

Inyssa leaned back and hugged her legs, unconsciously shrinking into herself. She felt a weird ache in her chest. "That's not how it should work."

" _What do you mean?"_

"People shouldn't forget the people they loved just because they died. Doesn't matter how long it's been." She looked down at the grave, wincing. "We should have to carry their memories and that pain of loss with us until we die."

She couldn't usually tell when Uxie was feeling something specific, but after she said that it became painfully clear that she had startled the legendary Pokemon. For a moment she felt a tinge of sadness, though it was quick to conceal it.

" _That… would be a torturous existence, don't you think?"_

"Maybe. But that's the kind of respect Bertha deserves." She closed her eyes, pressing her forehead against her knees. "I'm the only one who knows how brave and wonderful she was, the only person who can mourn her, and I can't even do  _that_  right."

" _It can't be helped. This kind of pain always eases, sooner or later."_

A slight crease formed on her forehead. "Not always. What about my sister?"

" _Has that pain not eased as well?"_

"Not like this, with Bertha," she said. "There's rarely a day when I don't think about Shadi."

" _That is to be expected. She was an incredibly important part of your life, even if your memories surrounding her are somewhat hazy."_ Inyssa frowned at that comment, though she didn't feel like asking what Uxie meant by it.  _"On the other hand, you knew Bertha for less than a month before she died. Your grief toward her passing is, understandably, not as powerful."_

"Maybe it should be." She bit her lower lip, feeling a sting in her eyes. "I was everything to her, so why isn't it the other way around? What kind of fucking person am I that I can't even suffer her death right!?"

The wind carried her scream throughout the flowerbeds, leaving behind an echoing silence. It immediately dawned on her that she had said too much. Then again, it wasn't like Uxie couldn't read her mind and emotional state whenever it wanted, anyway. Not much harm in letting it all out in its presence.

 _Maybe you can find another way_ , that familiar voice said from inside her mind.  _If you can't hurt enough emotionally, you could always…_

A terrible chill ran down her spine, and unconsciously she grabbed onto both her wrists, as if wanting to protect herself. She gulped, scrunched up her face and prayed to every deity she could think of that Uxie had not heard that intrusive thought. She promised she would not listen to them, anyway. They had no power over her anym–

" _Inyssa."_  Its voice rang in her mind, and she felt a rush of panic wash over her body.  _"I understand your point of view, but I believe you are looking at this problem the wrong way."_

"Y-yeah? How so?"

" _Instead of thinking about how you would like to pay your respects, how about you try to imagine what she would have wanted?"_

She raised her face from her knees, furrowing her brow. "What… she would've wanted?"

" _According to what you have said, that Bidoof seemed to have a powerful affection toward you,"_  said Uxie.  _"If so, don't you think she would have wanted you to move on from her death, and be happy? I can't imagine your suffering would bring her any kind of closure, wherever she is now."_

"'Dunno." She tried to shrug nonchalantly, though it looked more like a spastic shake of her shoulders. "Still doesn't feel right."

" _I don't blame you for thinking so. However…"_ Uxie deliberated for a moment.  _"In truth, I doubt you will ever fully forget those who have passed away, those whom you have loved. Even if the pain eases, you might find traces of their memory in your day to day life. The color of someone's eyes might remind you of them, or perhaps a certain sound or scent will trigger a dull ache in your chest without you knowing why._

" _Such is the power of memories. As my apprentice, I hope you'll learn not to dwell on them, and instead focus on how to extract their strength. I'm sure you'll understand, in time."_

Inyssa rolled her eyes. "And you're back to talking about that. You're like a really shitty sales pitcher, you know that?"

"… _Again, I apologize."_

Forcing herself to look up, she let her gaze fall on the gracidea once more. For some reason, the color of the petals looked less faded now.

"It's okay."

A grunt of effort escaped her lips as she placed a hand on the ground, pushing herself to her feet. The world spun for a moment, her back flaring in pain, and when her vision adjusted she could've sworn the light of the sun felt brighter. She had to squint to find the way she'd come from.

"I think that's enough mourning for today." Her voice came out thin, and tired. "And… thanks. For what you said. You're not as annoying as I thought you'd be"

There was a pause, and then she felt Uxie smile. "Always at your service, my liege."

She pursed her lips, trying not to laugh. "…Fucking dork."

 

* * *

 

 

Barry and Johanna did not have a hard time finding a table, since the Pokemon Center was pretty much empty by the time they arrived.

He found it surprising only until he decided on what food to order, after which his mind was set free of that particular dilemma and was able to re-focus. Now that he thought about it, it was kind of expected. Floaroma was literally in the middle of nowhere; a solitary, peaceful corner of the region whose adjacent routes didn't take one to any towns with Gyms in them. Were it not for the town's dock and honey plantations, he doubted any trainer would ever willingly pass by.

 _A shame_ , he thought as he sat down across Niss' mom with a cup of hot chocolate on one hand and a freshly baked donut on the other.  _It's super nice and cozy here. And I'm pretty sure I could take a nap anywhere in town and no one would be weirded out._

As tempted as he was to test his theory out, he was abruptly shaken from his train of thought by the sound of Johanna's voice.

"You know, I think this only the second time I've been in Floaroma." She absentmindedly began to pour the small packets of sugar she'd brought into her cup. All eight of them. "Even when I was a Contest star, my agents never had me come here for photo shoots or any of the sort. You'd think a place this beautiful would be a no brainer to build a Gym or a Contest stadium in, but apparently not."

"Heh, I was kinda thinking the same thing," he said. "Can you imagine how cool this town's Gym leader would be? They'd use a bunch of awesome grass Pokemon and they'd be all about flowers and plants and…" His voice trailed off, and he narrowed his eyes. "…Wait, that's just Gardenia."

Johanna's lips pursed in an attempt not to laugh, though the spasms shook her hand enough for the sugar to fall everywhere except inside the cup. Barry couldn't help but reel a bit. The wrinkles on the sides of her eyes, the way her face scrunched up, the single crease that formed on her forehead… it was exactly the same as when Niss did it. Uncannily so.

"I'm not one to think about these sort of things," she said, once she gathered herself, "but I'd hazard a guess it has something to do with the Association and the image they're trying to show to the world."

"Image? What image?"

"Of strength, obviously." Johanna rolled her eyes –once again, in much the same way Niss did–, though it didn't seem aimed at him. "They want to show all the other regions that our League is the strongest and that our trainers are the most dedicated, kind of a 'Look how amazing we are. You better not mess with us or you'll end up like Kanto' type of message. As far as ways to prevent another war go I'd say it's a little tacky, but I can't argue with the results."

He had a bit of trouble following the woman's rambling train of thought, though after so much practice in similar situations with Niss, he managed to at least understand the core of what she was trying to say.

"That's… super dumb." He frowned. "Who says you can't like flowers  _and_  be a strong trainer? Well I'm not a big fan of the former because I'm allergic to most of them but Niss likes them! And she's the strongest trainer I know… not counting Cynthia, I guess."

Johanna's eyes widened, and her mouth formed a small  _O_. "Hold on. Does Inyssa really like flowers? Besides roses, I mean?"

"Yeah! She really likes snowdrops and scillas and wisterias and… uh, that one that kinda looks like a blooming Pecha berry?" He scratched his head, looking down. "Crap, what was it called?"

"A gracidea?" offered Johanna.

"Yeah, that! She likes it 'cause it's super rare." He furrowed his brow, deep in thought. Wasn't there another one? "…Oh, I forgot about lavenders! She loves those though only because of the smell. The perfume she always uses actually smells like lavender."

Johanna's eyebrow quirked up, and she formed an amused smile. "Does it, now?"

"Yeah, it does!" He smiled, oblivious to what Johanna was implying. "Anyway, how come you didn't know? Didn't you design that rose outfit she used to fight Fantina?"

Her smile turned sour in the time it took Barry to blink. "That one was a no-brainer. Even as a kid she's always loved roses." She let out a small sigh, looking down at her cup. "But I didn't know if she began liking other flowers ever since. We… haven't had a chance to talk about her preferences much in the past few years. Or any other topic, really."

For a few seconds, the only sound in the building was the constant swish and swoosh coming from the other side of the counter as the nurse swept the floors. Barry tried to think of something to say, but his tongue felt tied in a knot.

"Sorry. Bad topic to bring up." Johanna cleared her throat, looking to the side. "So… how's your journey going? Did you two visit someplace interesting?"

Barry didn't answer right away, too busy trying not to pick up the intense waves of emotion coming off from Johanna. They felt like they were drilling into his mind, like a persistent, loud buzz. He didn't want to know what she felt, but it was kind of hard to avoid when she was so incredibly easy to read.

And he thought Niss wore her heart on her sleeve. With Johanna it was like she ripped it off and threw it at his face. Shame and regret were as clear on her face as if they'd been written with a permanent marker.

"Uh… yeah, I thought Eterna was kinda cool." He gulped, the fingers of his right hand nervously tapping the edge of the table. "Hey… Johanna?"

She blinked, lips pursing. "Yes Barry?"

Just when he was about to speak he felt the strong impulse to start nibbling the sides of his finger, like he did whenever he felt nervous. God… why was this kinda stuff so hard? He didn't have to, and to be honest Niss would be pretty mad at him if she ever found out, but…

"I… could tell you the stuff Niss likes now. If you wanna," he said. "Though I'm sure she'll be happy to tell you herself. Depending on how you ask."

Her whole face lit up, and he didn't know whether in relief or shame. "That's really nice of you, Barry. But as you said, I'd like to find out these things by myself once… once I get the chance to have a good talk with Inyssa." Her thin fingers fidgeted with each other over the table. "Though if I have to be honest, her taste in flowers wouldn't be the first topic I'd bring up at that point."

"What would you wanna ask her?"

"I'm not even sure, to be honest." She let out a short cackle, shaking her head. "Maybe I'd start with… asking if she's okay?"

Another laugh, another fidget of her hands. Barry wasn't an expert on these sort of things –even if by all means he should have been, considering he was Mesprit's chosen one–, but he was pretty sure Johanna felt… desperate?

"You're really worried about her, huh."

Johanna nodded, the tips of her shoulders stiffening. "You have no idea. After Sarah told me everything that's happened, all the times you two ran into that group of terrorists…" She hugged herself, shivering. "I couldn't stop thinking… what if it happens again? What if this is what happened to Shadi, if this is why she disappeared? I've been so worried…"

A speck of… something unpleasant sparked in Barry's stomach, but he tried to ignore it. "Hey, if it makes you feel better, I talked Niss into doing things the safer way now. We're trying to stay out of trouble as much as possible."

"Heh… I honestly don't know what she'd do without you," she said. "But even then, I feel like this is the kind of thing a mother should talk about with her daughter, you know? But… what right do I have to do that? Sarah's been more of a mom to her than I have." She placed an elbow on top of the table and held the side of her face in her hand. "I've been trying so hard to get better and stay sober, but that's just half the problem. I'm scared to… try and be more motherly with her. What if she sees it as an insult? What if it ruins the small progress I've made so far!?"

Barry couldn't help but reel back a bit, overwhelmed by the vibrant, almost palpable desperation in the woman's voice. More than once he had to close his eyes because he'd felt them flash gold for a moment.

"Niss… wouldn't get mad if you tried to do that," he said, voice thin due to the effort of trying to keep his eyes from changing color. "She probably wants to have a talk like that, though I'm sure she'd never admit it."

"That's kind of the problem, isn't it?" Johanna sighed, fingers driving against her hair. "It's a really delicate situation. I should probably start with smaller shows of affection and work my way up, but… what if she needs me right now? She'll be an adult soon; this is my chance to try and make up for what I did." Sighing deeply, she took the cup to her lips and gulped down half the tea. "This isn't fair to either of you. I know I shouldn't be burdening you with this but… what do you think I should do, Barry? Please, be honest with me."

 _Oh, great_ , he thought. Just what he sucked the most at; giving advice to others.

"I think the first thing you should do is calm down a bit. No matter what you end up doing, being all stressed about it isn't gonna help." He took a deep breath. What the heck was he saying? "Second… honestly, just keep up what you've been doing? It's been going well so far, and even if it's not as fast a progress as you'd like it to be, it's still progress, right? Sometimes the path to get better is to go about it one step at a time."

With every word he spoke, he began to feel like more and more of a fraud. He wasn't an inspirational speaker. He had absolutely no idea what he was talking about, but she'd asked for help and he'd be damned if he wasn't going to do his best, even if said best was just him rattling off whatever thing came into his mind.

"And… for the other thing you said." He thought for a moment. "I don't think you need to worry about time passing. I just turned eighteen and I still feel like I need my parents for stuff, so I'm sure Niss would feel the same. Even if it takes you a while, as long as you're there for her she'll probably be happy, no matter how old she is." He gave her a thumbs up. "Also, I promise we'll both do our best to keep each other out of trouble until then."

Johanna, whom until he'd finished speaking had clung to every one of his words, let out the breath she'd been holding and leaned back into her chair. She seemed to deflate from relief alone.

"I… I don't know what to say." She formed a lopsided smile. "Your advice isn't much different from what Sarah and Fantina have been telling me, but I guess I just needed a second opinion. Either that or I'm just that stubborn."

"If it's the second thing, that'd explain where Niss got it from."

She let out a fruity laugh. "Gods, that would explain it, wouldn't it?" There was a short pause. "Barry… thank you. I know I shouldn't have dumped my problems on you but… I really needed to hear that."

Barry's smile wavered, and he felt something heavy and cold forming on his stomach. He would've loved nothing more than to drop it there. To close the conversation and go on to talk about menial things until Niss got back, after which they could have a relaxed, if slightly awkward, lunch together. But… there was something else that needed to be talked about, and it unfortunately fell on him to take the first step.

Because he knew that Johanna needed to hear it, but also knew that Niss would never bring it up. Not as long as she held onto that pride of hers.

"There's something else, actually." He felt as if ants were running under the skin of his legs; he couldn't keep them still. "You told me to be honest, and I'm gonna respect that and say what's on my mind, okay?"

"Y-yes. Of course."

It took him a few seconds to put his thoughts in order.

"And… I think this has more to do with Niss and Shadi than you, but I think you deserve to know anyway." Johanna's expression hardened at the sound of that name. "Ugh, I should start from the beginning. You know how I turned eighteen a few weeks ago? We were in Pastoria at the time and there was a bonfire party that just happened to fall that day, so we decided to go there to celebrate since it seemed like a cool idea. And… I guess one thing led to another and to make the story short, Niss kinda got drunk?"

The reaction was immediate. Johanna's eyes shot open and her face twisted in what could only be panic, emanating from her expression toward him like a frigid gust of wind. It forced him to clench his teeth to endure it.

"S-she did what!?" Her voice wavered and jumped as she spoke. "How could she… I was sure she'd never…!"

"She didn't mean to!" He rushed to say. "It was just her first time drinking and it got out of hand and she told me after that she never wanted to drink again. Trust me, it's not… it's not like that."

"Are you absolutely sure?" she asked. "I can't chance this Barry. I can't let her go the same way I did, so if you're covering up for her…"

"It's not like that," he assured her. "I swear."

Johanna pursed her lips tight and leaned back into her chair. Even with a table between them, Barry could perfectly imagine the frenzied and fearful beating of her heart.

"Anyway, that's not what I wanted to say. After I found out she'd gotten drunk I stayed with her for the rest of the party and then took her to her room. But in the way there… she told me some stuff." He paused, then looked up at Johanna. "Stuff about you, and Shadi."

Her whole body tensed up, but she didn't reply. She simply stared, expectant.

"She doesn't remember this, and I didn't tell her about it when she asked me the next morning. I wouldn't even know how to bring it up." He rubbed the back of his neck, nervously. "I'm not good at like, paraphrasing and stuff, but the gist of what she told me is that… growing up, she always thought you and Shadi hated her?"

"W-what? What do you mean?"

"That's what she said." He shrugged. "And, like… I don't have a great memory and even back then when we were kids I don't think I would've realized because I was even more oblivious than now, but… thinking back, it makes sense? After her dad passed away she changed a bit, but not as much as after Shadi disappeared. You remember how she was before, right?" He bit his lower lip. "She wasn't nearly as skinny or pale and she smiled a lot more and… ha, I'm pretty sure she used to be taller than me." He couldn't help but form a lopsided smile. His eyes began to sting. "But after that I remember she didn't want to hang out as much, and when we did it was kind of depressing. She didn't eat much either, like she couldn't bring herself to do it unless it was just enough not to be sick."

He stopped to breathe, and also so his voice wouldn't break. It had been painful enough when he heard it directly from her, but now re-telling it was like opening the wound once more. How had he not noticed? How could he have been so blind?

"I… I know what you mean." Johanna couldn't bring herself to look at him. Her eyes welled up with barely concealed tears. "After… what she did, the doctors told me she'd been pretty much starving herself, and b-because she'd done it at that age it would probably stunt her growth permanently." She gulped, face whitened. "It's all my fault. I wish I could've known how much Shadi's disappearance would affect her."

Barry felt his insides churning, but he forced himself to speak nonetheless, "That's… the thing. Thinking back, and after what she told me, I'm pretty sure that all started happening since before Shadi even left?"

"W-what?"

"Weren't there a few months where Shadi took care of Niss?" He frowned. "After she lost against the Champion the first time, but before she went back for her re-match and disappeared."

"Yes, she…" Johanna scrunched up her face in thought. "I remember; she was supposed to be back for a week or so, but then I had an episode and… Sarah asked her to stay. So she could take care of both of us." Her expression darkened. "Do you think…?"

"That's when it started? Yeah." He crossed his legs, still fidgeting. "Niss told me… she told me that she doesn't remember much from those months, and that kinda scares me. I remember not seeing her much during that time, but I never asked what was going on and neither did my mom because we figured Shadi was teaching her how to be a trainer, like my dad did with me. But now… I'm not sure."

Johanna nodded, "I wish I could tell you what happened, but I also barely remember a thing from those months. It was one of my harshest and more painful relapses." She unconsciously hugged herself. "I do remember Shadi taking care of me, but I can't recall her ever… willingly talking to me. And whenever I caught a glimpse of her face she always seemed so bitter." She sighed. "And I can't blame her. She was one of the best trainers in the region and because of me she was stuck in her own home, unable to do what she loved." Her eyes lost all gleam, turning dull and faded. "I stole the most important months of her life, just like I did with Inyssa. It's no wonder they both left as soon as they got the chance."

The tapping of his foot against the ground became more incessant, along with the weird heat suddenly growing from his stomach. His entire body felt wrong and uncomfortable. The cup in front of him stood full and untouched.

"Don't compare them like that," he said, slightly raising his volume. "Niss didn't leave because of you. She got an opportunity to become a trainer like she always wanted and she took it. But Shadi…" He gulped, his face reddening. "She had no right to leave. She had a little sister to take care of."

Johanna's brow furrowed. "I should've been the one to take care of h…"

"But you weren't." He cut her off. "And Shadi knew you wouldn't, but she left anyway."

"Of course she did, she hated me!" Johanna clutched at her chest. "After everything that happened, why would she stay? If I hadn't been so…"

"That's not what I meant!"

The room grew silent. Barry didn't notice the way Johanna froze, nor the sudden spike of volume in his voice.

"Just stop saying  _I_  all the time!" He threw one hand up in the air, face reddening. "This isn't about you or Shadi, it's about Niss! It doesn't matter who should've done what because in the end you both ended up abandoning her anyway!"

Johanna leaned as back as she could on her seat, eyes wide in surprise. "Barry…"

"She didn't deserve what you two did to her! It's… just so awful and shitty and I hate it!" He bellowed. "And I don't wanna be a bad friend and bring it up when I know it'll only make Niss sad but someone has to say something! She always acts like she's totally over it and there's no way this stuff could get to her but I know it does. I'm sure half the reason she works so hard is because she wants to prove herself. But she shouldn't have to. A loving family's not something anyone should have to earn."

Only when he ran out of breath did he stop speaking, and just then he realized how loud he'd been. The room was deathly silent, both Johanna and the nurse at the other side of the room staring at him with surprised, somewhat frightened expressions.

… _Great. Now I look like a lunatic._

His heart felt like a drum inside his chest. He collapsed back into his chair and covered his face with both hands, breathing heavily. No one said anything for what felt like an entire minute, until he decided to break the silence again.

He lowered the hands to his lap, but didn't look up. "You know… I'm the one who found Niss on the floor that day, holding that empty bottle of pills. Not Shadi, 'cause she left, and not you since you were upstairs passed out on your bed." He ran a hand through his hair, pressing his forehead against his palm. "I'm… sorry for yelling and getting angry. And I'm still happy you're making an effort to get better, but I also think you owe Niss an apology. At the very least."

Across the table, a pale Johanna nodded, almost imperceptibly. Her lips were pursed into a thin, white line across her face and her eyes were welling up with tears, but she looked like she was trying to contain herself from crying.

"Y-you're right. It's the least I can do, after…" She pressed her eyes shut and shook her head. "No, I shouldn't lament myself anymore. I have to smile and be happy for her, right? And that way, when I apologize to her… hopefully she'll believe me."

Barry breathed out, his lips forming a tiny, tired smile. He felt exhausted all of a sudden, as if those two minutes of anger had taken up all the emotional energy he had for the day. The thought amused him, though he was too numb to laugh.

"She will. Don't mention I told you this, but I'm sure she'd give her right eye to have an excuse to forgive you."

"In that case, I'll apologize and continue to work as hard as I can to get better." She held her head high for the first time since he could remember, the green of her eyes bright and lively. "I swear I'll leave this sickness behind, and I'll become someone Inyssa can trust, no matter what it takes."

"I'll take you up on that promise." His smile dropped suddenly, and his expression darkened. "Now… let's hope I can find Shadi someday, so I can make her apologize too."

 

* * *

 

 

Shadi sighed into her left palm. Thin tendrils of some smoke-like substance rose from the outline of her cloak, coiling onto themselves and moving erratically as if reacting to her irritation. Waves of darkness spread from her body outwards with the rhythm of her breathing, shaking the air itself and causing the light bulbs hanging from the ceiling to blink in and out.

Meanwhile, Cyrus ignored her. His computer screen cast a sickly white light on the already pale canvas which was his face, a color only broken up by the charcoal-black bags under his eyes.

She took her favorite place in the room –leaning against the wall next to the fridge– and sent a scowl his way.

"Are you even listening to me?"

The click of a mouse was heard, and then he blinked. "No."

"…You replied, though."

"A response meant to emphasize the stupidity of your question," he said. "Regardless of what words I chose, the act of replying itself would've given you the answer to your question."

She threw her hand into the air and parted her lips as if to reply, but after a moment simply shook her head and sighed. "Fair enough." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Dear Synn above I'm tired. I can't believe I fell for that one."

"Perhaps sleeping would calm your nerves?" he offered, not a speck of concern in his tone. "Someplace far from here, so that I may resume my work?"

"You're not getting rid of me that easily."

He nodded absentmindedly, "No, I suppose not. Any deviation from your habit of constantly breaking into my office to rob me of precious work hours would be, while pleasant, quite unrealistic to fathom."

Shadi's expression dulled. It was nice to know having his emotions erased didn't stop Cyrus from getting sassy at her every now and then… wait, no, nice wasn't the word she was looking for. Excruciatingly irritating, more like.

 _That's two words_ , a voice said in her head. She decided to ignore it.

"I just… I'm having trouble coming to terms with the spectacular breadth of your incompetence," she said. "I really doubt you could've fucked up the plan more if you had tried to."

"And what  _plan_  are you referring to?" asked Cyrus. "Is it the one you've agreed to help me with? Or the one you'll put into motion as soon as you sabotage mine? It seems my failings have affected you far more than they have affected me."

Shadi raised an eyebrow, a sly smile stretching across her lips. "I've been honest about my intentions from day one, Cyrus, and yet you decided to accept my truce. Don't go sounding so bitter now that you can see the writing on the walls telling you I'll be the one to come ouf on top in the end."

Cyrus opened his mouth as if to reply, but instead let out a long yawn as he craned his head from side to side, making his neck click. He could not have looked more bored if he had tried.

"You claim to play with cards face up on the table, all the while transparently hiding an ace in your sleeve," he said. "You're a cheater a dozen, and not a particularly talented one at that. Were it not for your powerful Pokemon and the legend you've forced to do your bidding, I heavily doubt you'd have come this far."

"And how do you think I obtained those things?" She smiled as she spoke, though her words came out fast and erratic. "Funny of you to mention trust, too. If you'd told me about your plan to kill Cynthia earlier then maybe I could've helped and my life would be a shit ton easier right now!"

Her outburst was followed by another wave of power which exploded outwardly, flaring her eyes and making Cyrus flinch for a moment, taken aback by a sudden sense of exhaustion.

He blinked a few times and shook his head. "You know, last time I talked to your sister, I told her you were much more composed than her… but I'm beginning to see the family resemblance," he sighed. "I'll make sure to apologize for lying to her next time we meet."

She swallowed down the myriad of responses popping up in her mind, and instead chose to rub her eyelids and take a deep, deliberate breath. He was right, as much as she hated to admit it. The mix of her frustration and Cyrus' recent failures were getting the better of her; nothing good would come of acting while in such an enraged state.

Family resemblance… those two words must've tickled the humor center of her brain –or perhaps she really was that sleep deprived– because she couldn't help but find them funny.

She supposed she had slightly miscalculated the lengths her sister would go to in order to prove herself. She had underestimated her, but then again who wouldn't have? Inyssa was talented, yes, but compared to her she was barely a pebble on the side of the road. Her determination to tackle the League challenge did fill Shadi with the slightest hints of pride, and while her outbursts toward Team Galactic had been amusing, she never considered the possibility that they might end up compromising her plans. It was simply unthinkable, nothing but a matter to laugh about.

Well, she wasn't laughing now. As much as she loathed the idea, it was time for her to intervene before Inyssa had any more chances to get in her way. It was bad enough that she had bonded with Uxie; if she learned to use those powers…

No, it wouldn't come to that. She couldn't let it, no matter what.

"I'll have a talk with Inyssa," she said, turning to look at Cyrus. "But that's as far as I'll go. Finding Mesprit and recovering Uxie falls in your hands."

"Yes, I know," he said. "All in its due time. Right now my attention is more focused on the Association's latest project."

She looked down, frowning, "They're ignoring the public's opinion and going about it the logical way. It's gotta be Cynthia who's behind this." She stroked her chin contemplatively. "Are you sure she'll be part of the strike team?"

"I am. My new spy has gone to great lengths to obtain this information for me, and I trust her abilities."

Shadi rolled her eyes. There he went again, talking about trust as if he could feel anything of the sort for any of his employees. Still, the man was good at judging people. If he believed this new spy of his to be on their side for now then she wouldn't dispute it.

Now, the strike team… that was a problem. As long as Cynthia was the leader it didn't matter who else was in it, their victory would be assured either way. Then again, that overwhelming strength of her might just be the tool she needed to tip the scales in their favor.

Her lips curled up ever so slightly, and the air around her shivered.

"Cynthia will find this place sooner or later," she said. "Actively trying to avoid it would be pointless. The best you can do is obscure your trail and buy enough time to place all the pieces of your plan into place before she comes down on this base."

"How… fatalistic. Are you saying I should hand over this place as soon as she finds it?"

She raised her index finger toward him, an amused smile forming on her lips, "There's no need for that. You're forgetting about the one advantage we still have over her." Her eyes narrowed slightly, and the room itself seemed to grow darker. "Cynthia doesn't know I'm still alive. The element of surprise is in our hands."

Cyrus nodded to himself, "However, that advantage will disappear if you deploy any sort of counter-measure. What will happen then?"

"Unlike you, I've already placed my pieces exactly where I want them. Cynthia might be the strongest trainer in all of Sinnoh, but that only means her failures will echo more loudly than her accomplishments ever have." Pressing her thumb and middle finger together, she mimicked the act of grabbing and moving a chess piece. "All I need to do is turn her own power against her. By the time I make my first move, the match will already be over."

The world dulled around her while she talked, an unconscious smile stretching across her face. When she came back to reality, she found Cyrus using one hand to massage his temple, all the while sighing to himself.

"Do you ever hear the things you say?" He asked, a hint of irritation in his tone. "The immense absurdity of it all? As I expected, you're not taking this seriously. You're just a child playing a game."

In a magnanimous show of maturity, Shadi stuck her tongue out at him.

"Well, this child is the only chance you have to save your team," she shrugged. "As I said, Cynthia  _will_  find you. Alone, you'd be finished, but with me at least you'll have a chance to fight back."

"I suppose I can't argue with that," he whispered, exhaustion clinging to his voice. "Though… I wonder. For someone who claims to hate the Champion, you're rather quick to compliment her strength. I find that odd."

Shadi's smile dropped, along with the atmosphere around her. She pursed her lips tight, the dull green of her eyes flashing blue for a fraction of a second.

"That's because I'm the only person in this entire region who knows what she's capable of. I made the mistake of underestimating her once, and almost lost everything in the process." Her voice lost all semblance of levity, now turned into something cold and jagged and dangerous. "But… this time, I'll be ready. I'll have Cynthia killed, no matter what it costs me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to my cat Manchita, who passed away yesterday. She was the best of cats, and I hope she's happy wherever she is now.


	49. Deluge

Inyssa gawked at the edge of the port, a smug Johanna at her right and an aloof Johnny the Quagsire at her left.

"That's a big fucking ship," she whispered.

"Saair!" Johnny agreed, absentmindedly tilting his body from side to side while slapping his belly with his fins.

The Floaroma port was nothing to write home about; barely a couple hundred yards wide and with only five docks for boats to lay anchor, though it was pretty nicely kept if nothing else. A salty, fresh breeze blew from behind her toward the horizon, mixing the scent of the distant meadows with that of the sea itself. She breathed in deeply, a tiny smile forming on her lips.

However the scent was the last thing on her mind at the moment, mostly overtaken by her awe at the massive cruise ship anchored a few yards from where they stood. It was painted almost entirely white, the only exception being the blazing orange tips on the two smokestacks at the back, along with the wooden flooring of the deck. The top was divided into five large floors, all stacked on top of one another with only rows of windows to distinguish between them from outside. She estimated that the ship had to be at least a thousand feet in length, and she was being generous with her guess.

At the side of the ship, emblazoned in ultramarine blue and written across a quarter of the length of the vessel, was the ship's name:  _S.S Anne_.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Johanna sighed dreamily, clutching her chest with both hands. "They don't call it the ship of dreams for nothing. We're lucky it just happened pass by Floaroma this time of year; normally it'd already be in the Vermillion port in Kanto."

She raised an eyebrow. "You sure know a lot about it. Still, I would've been fine with a normal boat; for such a short trip this feels a bit excessive."

"Well… I felt like you needed a bit of a break, which is why I bought a ticket for you and Barry." Johanna shrugged. "You'll probably arrive in Canalave tomorrow morning, but until then you can relax to your heart's content." She shone Inyssa a bright, somewhat timid smile. "Besides… this ship means a lot to me. There's nothing I'd love more than for you to experience its wonders."

Inyssa had to contain the urge to roll her eyes. "If I hadn't known beforehand that you've been spending a lot of time with Fantina, that cheesy line would've confirmed it."

Johanna's lips pursed and her eyes widened in embarassment. Inyssa was pretty sure that if her mother had not been wearing a base of makeup over her cheeks, she would have seen them redden after hearing that.

"Fantina's just… been trying to ease me back into Contests and modeling, now that I'm stable enough to start working again." There was a short pause. "Our relationship is strictly professional."

"…Right. Says the woman who couldn't swing wider if she had a baseball bat and rotating waist."  _One of the only things I got from you_ , Inyssa thought with a smile. "Just try to take it one step at a time, okay? I'm having a hard enough time trying to adjust to you; the last thing I need is a step-mom on top of it."

Johanna crossed her arms and looked to the side, gulping. "Don't… say such stupid things."

Still, her point stood. Inyssa didn't need to be told her mother's history with the ship again. Before she'd fallen prey to her addiction, Johanna had told her countless times about that fateful summer day when she met her husband Leonard on the deck of the S.S Anne, just as it was about to leave Vermillion and head toward Sinnoh. Apparently, they had bonded over the fact that they'd both lost to the same young trainer with a stupid hat who had boarded the ship only to challenge people in Pokemon fights, and then promptly left just before the trip started.

As far as first love stories went, it was a tad more strange than most, but she supposed that's why she liked it.

Without meaning to, her gaze veered left toward the other half of the port, where Barry was still busy trying to keep Razen from beating the crap out of a bunch of Wingulls. Her cheeks reddened slightly, as a thought occurred to her. Raising an inquisitive eyebrow, she turned to look at her mother.

"The fact that you chose to buy a ticket for both of us is just altruism on your part, I imagine." She crossed her arms, pretending to be scornful. "It has nothing to do with any nefarious plots you might or might not have thought of, and it's just a coincidence that this also happens to be the ship where you fell in love with dad, right?"

She had never truly seen the resemblance she and her mother shared, but as the woman not so subtly looked to the side, her arms crossed and lips pursed in an attempt not to smile, Inyssa couldn't ignore the similarities.

"My intentions are as noble as they can be, I assure you."

Inyssa rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right."

Any further complaints she might have wanted to air were cut short, as the ship's horn rang at that moment and shook the air with its intensity. She winced, setting her jaw. God she hated loud noises.

All around her people began to board the ship; and it occurred to her that she and Barry should do the same. A few seconds passed in silence, and then she turned to look at her mother, expression blank.

Johanna's fingers interlaced with each other, as they usually did when she felt nervous. "Well… I hope you two have a nice trip. I'll be cheering you on for your League challenge, alright?"

 _She wants to bring something up but she's scared to do it_ , Inyssa realized with a frown.  _Maybe… just this time..._

"I'll try my best to win, then." She returned the smile. "And… thanks, mom. For the ticket and everything else; I really appreciate it."

"I'm glad that you do." Johanna gulped, looking down. "I don't know if you want to hear this or not, but… I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry. For… pretty much everything. I know it doesn't make up for any of what happened to you but I…"

Her voice trailed off as Inyssa placed a hand on her shoulder, delicately. Her face was expressionless.

"It's fine," she said. "I love you too. I'm glad you're taking this seriously, and I'm looking forward to the person you want to become."

Slowly, almost tentatively, Inyssa reached forward and pulled Johanna into a tight, somewhat clumsy hug. Her mother stood frozen for a second, eyes wide and slowly welling up with tears, before she came to her senses and returned the hug with a desperate sense of relief.

Unfortunately, the tenderness of the scene was ruined –somewhat at least– by Johnny's aloof enthusiasm as he grabbed onto both their legs and joined the hug as well. A cold shiver ran up Inyssa's leg as she felt the wet, slimy substance the Quagsire's body was covered in passing through her jeans and touching her skin. She sighed in acceptance, used to his shows of affection by now.

Johanna was less gracious; she jumped back with a barely concealed shriek and almost tripped on a loose tile behind her, a horrified look on her face.

"It's okay," said Inyssa, her body shaking with the laughter she was trying to contain. "Slimy hugs is just how he says ' _I love you'_."

 

* * *

 

 

It said a lot about Barry and her, Inyssa thought, that aboard one of the most famous cruise ships in the world they had chosen to spend their time playing with the old arcades and pinball machines littering the bar.

Well, bar was maybe not the correct word to describe the ship's biggest and most populated room, but it was the first that had come to mind. In reality it was more a mix of a game room, a lounge, a casino and a fancy diner. Bright neon lights reflected off the mirrors in the ceiling, bathing the entire room with a technicolor glow which made it difficult to tell what color everything was. A dozen rows of tables and chairs went from the drink stand in the center outwards like the hands of a clock, with a little space in between them so that people could move around.

The remaining four sides of the room, close to the walls, had different forms of entertainment littered about. The Barry and her were in was absolutely filled from side to side with arcade machines and a myriad of other games, while at their right she could see a few rows of roulettes, slot machines and poker tables. The other two were the ship's kitchen and restaurant, and the resting area which was full of comfy sofas, big TVs and happened to be the only one which opened up to a dark balcony from which a little sunlight filtered through, likely the last slivers of it before the sun went down.

Which was all well and good, a very pretty room and whatever the fuck, but at the moment Inyssa could not have cared less. All her attention was currently focused on the fact that she was –to put it lightly– getting her ass handed to her on a silver platter in a game of air-hockey.

"Son of a BITCH!" She cried out as the disc bounced on one of the walls and entered her goal. There was a small beep, and the number thirteen on Barry's side of the counter changed to a fourteen. Her three looked pathetic, in comparison.

"Booyah!" A wide smile formed on Barry's face. Nonchalantly, he began making his palet spin on the tip of his finger. "Sorry Niss, but I think I'm taking this one."

"Like hell you are," she growled back.

She stomped her way toward the side of the table to grab another disc, all the while making calculations in her head. The game was a best of thirty. She could not afford to lose another point.

"I don't get it." She let out a huff, slamming her palet against the surface of the table and throwing the disc in front of it. "The speed, the trajectory, the resistance, I'm accounting for all that every time I hit the goddamn thing, and yet I'm still losing!"

Barry looked like he was trying hard not to laugh. "I mean yeah, but you can't stop one of my throws to save your life. You need to work on your reflexes."

"Any more lip from you and I'm shoving that disc down your throat." Her eyebrows formed a bridge over her nose as she looked down at the table. "I can still win; just watch me."

Unfortunately, all Barry ended up seeing was his counter increasing fist to fifteen, and then to sixteen as the game came to a premature, tragic end. Placing her hands on the edge of the table, Inyssa sighed and hung her head in defeat, a deep wound on her pride.

Though, to be fair, she wasn't exactly at her best. She would have never brought it up in fear of sounding like a sore loser, but she could almost swear there was a bit of turbulence making the disc veer every time she came close to scoring.

"Whatever. We're still one to one." She grabbed her glass and downed the remainder of her Pecha berry juice in one gulp. "Come on, let's get a refill and hit the rest of the games. There's gotta be something else I can beat you at."

Another hour passed, but she did end up finding such a game. Only one. Still, since it was the last one they played, she managed to wash down the bitter taste of defeat with at least one tasty gulp of victory before they gave it a rest. Pool was just the game for her, it turned out. It required as much strategy and aim as air hockey, with the added benefit of being impossible for Barry to use his reflexes to stop her shots.

She let out a relieved sigh as she let herself fall on a chair next to one of the many free tables. Barry did the same in front of her, though more carefully as he held a large plastic plate in his hands, on top of which rested two glasses full of their preferred fizzy drinks and a tray of corn chips bathed in cheddar.

Not much, but she was not planning to stay in that room for the entire night. She hated large crowds, and more and more people had started to come as the sun went down.

Though, to be honest, that was not the only reason.

"Oh my god, these are so good!" Barry said after gulping down a handful of chips. "I could eat these all night."

She shot him a tiny smile. "I don't doubt that."

As much as she would have wanted to, she did not join him. Her stomach felt tied into a knot, and under the table her fingers kept interlacing with each other in an erratic rhythm. If she ate anything, she doubted it would have stayed down for long.

She told Barry it was just nausea from the ship, but that was not the real reason. Doubt and embarrassment formed a knot around her throat, and her own heartbeat boomed in her ears. What her mother had said back there in the port… it had started as nothing more than a small, annoying idea, like a fly bouncing around her head wanting to be noticed, but as the hours passed it seemed to have wormed its way into her head, and was currently raging a furious battle against what little was left of her common sense.

 _It worked for Johanna, didn't it?_  The idea whispered to her.  _You'll have to do it eventually; what better place than this?_

It would have been annoying enough on its own, but there was yet another, more familiar voice arguing back on her behalf, so Inyssa felt sandwiched between the both of them, not knowing which one to agree with. Still, at least Uxie was leaving her alone for the moment.

 _You'll just ruin your friendship if you confess_ , the second voice said.  _Besides, even if Barry feels the same way, he deserves someone much better than you._

Inyssa set her jaw, crinkles forming on the edge of her eyes. With tremendous effort, she managed to dull that voice, sending it to the back of her mind. She had sworn she wouldn't listen to it anymore.

 _I can do it_ , she told herself.  _I deserve good things just as much as anyone else, and I need to tell him sooner or later._

"Uh… Niss?"

She almost shot out of her seat, eyes going wide. Across the table, Barry stared at her with a raised eyebrow and half a corn chip in his hand.

"Are you okay? You look kinda pale."

"Huh?" Her lashes fluttered a couple times. "A-ah, yes. I'm fine, just thinking about stuff." A lopsided smile formed on her lips. "You know how it is."

Barry frowned. "You're always thinking, though. You should stop that for a few minutes and eat chips with me!"

Inyssa chuckled, a bit of her nervousness leaving her as she did so.

Stop thinking, huh? Maybe that was the answer to her problem. Maybe… she could take a page out of his book and just go with her instincts.

 _Go big or go home_ , she thought, her lips stretching into a cheeky smile.

"Hey…" She gulped, trying her best to fill her voice with confidence. "Do you think we could… like, in a few minutes go up to the deck and hang out there? Maybe catch the sunset?"

Barry tilted his head to the side, gulping down his food. "Oh, yeah it's getting kinda crowded here huh." He looked around with his usual wide look, completely unaware of her intentions. "Yeah, that sounds nice! We could see if we spot any cool water Pokemon off the edge."

"Yeah, and maybe we could… talk."

There was a short pause, like the one during an exhalation, and Barry furrowed his brow. "Sure. Talk about what?"

 _Here we go_ , she thought.  _I have to warn him first, so he knows._

"Well, you know. About u–"

A voice spoke behind her. "Excuse me?"

Inyssa paused, closed her eyes and sighed.  _Of course_ , she thought. _If I'm not the one sabotaging my love life then someone else has to pick up the slack._

However, her irritation was replaced with surprise as she turned around to look at whoever had just talked. She was met with a short woman wearing a white shirt and black bow and vest –the uniform she had seen on all the waitresses–, who tipped her head slightly down at her, smiled and then placed a champagne glass on her table, adorned with a little purple umbrella.

"Your alcohol-free  _Blanc de Noirs_ , miss."

Inyssa's forehead creased in confusion. "I… didn't order this."

"It's from the woman upstairs," said the waitress. "Dark clothes and hair. She asked if you'd be kind enough to join her on the deck of the ship." Her gaze moved from Inyssa to Barry, and then back to her. "Alone."

They exchanged a confused look as the woman bowed and left. Atop the table, the glass sparkled as the bubbles inside rose to the surface, slightly moving the tiny umbrella as they did so.

"Who do you think its from?" Barry leaned forward a bit, his thick eyebrows joining over the bridge of his nose. "Secret admirer?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, can't seem to keep those away," she said, tone thick with sarcasm.

"Oh! You think it's Cynthia!?"

"She said dark clothes  _and_  hair. It's gotta be someone else." She let out a sigh. "Might as well go. If I don't I'll be curious all night and I'm not gonna be able to concentrate on…" She stopped herself. "Never mind."

"Are you sure?" Barry asked, tone concerned. "What if it's someone from Team Galactic?"

"It's okay; I'll tell you through Uxie if I need any help." She tapped the side of her forehead. "You can have the rest of the chips. I'll be back in a few."

"Alright… good luck."

Inyssa couldn't help but feel uneasy as she turned away from the table and headed toward the wide staircases leading up to the first floor. And it only had partly to do with the mysterious woman calling to her. To think she had been so close to finally taking the first step to tell Barry how she felt…

 _It's okay, you can do it later_ , she assured herself.  _The night's still young. So young that it hasn't even started yet._

A blur of light was all she could see as she emerged into the deck of the ship, the waning shape of the sun in the horizon bathing her face in sunlight and forcing her to squint. It was barely a sliver of orange; no more than a couple minutes away from disappearing.

At her sides and past the edges of the ship, there were only endless, waving sheets of water, almost a blinding white close to the horizon and becoming darker as they went back. On the right, a mile or so away, she spotted a small row of tall, probably uninhabited islands which looked like rows of teeth separating the sea from the horizon. She stood still, staring at it, for far longer than she should have.

Cold ran up her body as a gust of wind passed through the deck, startling her back to reality. Shaking her head slightly, she craned her neck to look around. Only a dozen or so people were still around; most of them either with someone or leaning against the rails, looking longingly into the sea.

 _At least it shouldn't be hard to find this woman_ , she thought.

Indeed it was not; the only person who fit the description from the waitress was someone at the furthest edge of the deck, staring into the horizon with her back to Inyssa. Her hair was a charcoal black, long and tied behind her. She wore some sort of dark coat or cloak which covered most of her body; its edge waving with the wind behind her ankles.

Inyssa walked toward her, an unexpected, gnawing anxiety growing inside of her. Why did her chest felt so tight all of a sudden?

She did not need to say anything; as soon as she was a few feet away the woman lifted up her head and slowly turned toward her. From Inyssa's perspective it happened almost in slow motion; her curtain of black hair moved to the side to reveal the paleness of her face, along with the ghastly-looking scar running up her neck and through her sharp chin.

Both pairs of green eyes met, and Inyssa felt as if the entire world had frozen in place, as if her heart had been strewn with a rope of thorns. Her lips parted slightly, letting out a sound halfway between a sob and a sharp inhalation.

Across her Shadi's lips stretched into a tight smile, and she spoke.

"Hi, Niss. It's been a while."


End file.
